Final Lifeline
by BEN-Beyond the Elusive Nomads
Summary: The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto’s life forever…
1. Chapter 1

**Final Lifeline**

**By KuroInu579**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina, SasuSaku, NejiTen

The rest are undecided.

_**Chapter One:**_

Naruto's eye's filled with tears as the snow began to fall on the scene. His mind couldn't grasp why Haku had to die, for Zabuza of all people. Naruto looked away from the scene, unaware of Kyuubi's inner monologue…

'**The kit is too reckless…**' Kyuubi murmured, glaring at nothing,** 'He'll eventually kill himself even with my help…this kid need's a lesson,' **The Kyuubi began to seek out his chakra, before pulling all the stray strands into himself, weakening his connection with the blond. He made sure to get all his excess chakra, before he did the one thing he hoped would never happen, and strengthened the seal, completely severing their connection. He yawned, before curling into a ball, and waiting.

Naruto's head jerked up, shocking his team, as he felt his chakra decrease rapidly, until it was so low, he collapsed to his knee's, dry heaving. The feeling was definitely not a pleasant one.

Kakashi looked over at his student, before kneeling beside his student, worried, "Naruto, what's wrong?"

"Chakra…gone…" he rasped, before passing out. Kakashi observed his chakra, and realized that if he didn't get more Chakra soon, he would die. Kakashi did one of the few things his partner, Rin, had taught him: How to transfer Chakra.

The only problem was from whom.

Kakashi didn't have enough to spare, and neither did Sakura or Sasuke. He decided to take the chakra of the only person it wouldn't effect: Haku.

Kakashi gently picked up his student and brought him close to Haku, before making a small cut on the genin's palm, and was shocked to see it wasn't healed immediately. He dapped his finger tips into Haku's wound', before placing his blood coated finger onto the cut, and forming a one handed ram seal.

"Ijou no Jutsu, he murmured, and soon, Haku's chakra began to leave him via his chest wound, and enter the jinchuriki's veins. Kakashi was please to see that the blond's reserves were filling up quite nicely. Once Naruto's coils were full, he removed his hand, and the chakra flow stopped.

"What did you just do, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked, supporting a weak Sasuke on her shoulder.

"His chakra was almost completely eradicated, so I had to transfer chakra into him with an old jutsu I knew." He said, before gently placing Naruto on his back, "Come one, we need to head to Tazuna-san's house."

"Hai," Sakura said with a nod, before helping her crush follow their sensei, "Ano, what are we going to do with their bodies, Kakashi-sensei?"

"I'll head back and burry them," he replied, adjusting Naruto carefully. Sakura nodded, and was silent as they continued onward.

**xXxXx**

His saw large golden gates, where the Kyuubi sat lazily, tails flickering back and forth lazily, and The Kyuubi eyed him, before speaking,

"**I have cut off our Connection, gaki," **he said, straight to the point,** "You need to gain self control. You are too reckless, and you'll die if this goes on."** The Kyuubi stood, before addressing the blond again. Not giving him a chance to speak.

"**In three day's, you won't hear me at all, It will be like I'm not even here," he **said, and Naruto opened his mouth to speak. The bijuu quickly cut him off, **"Your chakra coils are weaker, meaning you need to take it easy. You can't make so many Kage bunshins, and you can't use up all your energy."**

"Fine! I don't need you, bastard fox!" Naruto yelled, pointing at him, before he found his throat hurt, and it was hard to breath. Kyuubi smirked.

"**Baka, the sudden loss of Chakra impaired your immune system, your lungs, and increased your Chakra control. It can withstand usual ninja moves, but If you're too hyper, you'll strain your lungs, and wind up passed out on your kitchen floor,"**

"Bastard," Naruto cursed softly, and the Kyuubi chuckled.

"**Just calm down, you'll have some help…"**

"What the hell dose that mean?" Naruto asked angrily.

"**In the next three days, I am going to train you so when you awake, you'll have a bit more control." **Kyuubi smirked, **"But I'm not the only voice in your head that's going to help you."**

"Baka fox, I'm impaired, not insane," Naruto murmured, and the Kyuubi chuckled again, before regaining composure.

"**Listen carefully, gaki, you'll find this more useful then you might think…"**

**xXxXx**

**Three day's later…**

His eyes fluttered open, and he felt rejuvenated. He looked to his side, and Saw Kakashi setting there reading his book.

"Ohayo, Naruto-kun," Kakashi said, waving his hand.

"How long was I out?" Naruto asked. His training with kyuubi felt like a month.

"Only three day's," his sensei said, turning his page in his book, "You're lucky I was here to help."

"What happened?" Naruto asked, clenching and unclenching his fist, "I feel a foreign chakra in my system…"

"I had to use an out-dated technique to transfer Haku's remaining chakra into your system. You were about to die," Kakashi said, flipping another page, "Sorry, but I don't know what the side effects are, I didn't listen to that part of the explanation," Kakashi rubbed the back of his head, smiling sheepishly, "Gomen,"

"S'okay, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto muttered, before setting up, "When are we heading back to Konoha?"

"Today. I sent a letter explaining why we were held back the first day. We honestly didn't expect you be out for so long,"

"Neither did I," Naruto murmured to his self, before grinning at his sensei, "How's Tazuna and his family doing?"

"They're doing fine," Kakashi said, before closing his book, "You might want to pack up, we need to head out as soon as possible."

"Hai!" Naruto replied, before wincing, remembering Kyuubi's warning. '_This will take some getting used to…'_

It didn't take very long for him to gather his stuff, and when he walked downstairs, he saw his team ready to leave. He grinned, before following them out.

"Bye, Naruto!" Inari yelled, waving his hands wildly. Naruto grinned, before turning and giving him thumbs up. As He walked under the bridge, he saw what they had named it, and his eye's widened.

"Holy shit!" he yelled, before coughing slightly. The sign read 'The Great Naruto Bridge'. Naruto grinned, before turning, and catching up with his team. As much as he liked wave, he couldn't wait to get back to Konoha. Then a though hit him.

"Oi! What about Zabuza and Haku!?" He asked, and his team looked at him, confused. Kakashi answered his question,

"I cremated them, and Zabuza's sword is in this scroll," Kakashi pointed to his flack jacket, "Why?" Naruto looked at the ground, kicking his foot slightly.

"If you had buried them…I had wanted to see where, and pay my respects…" he murmured.

'_Ask for the scroll…'_ Naruto blinked as the voice entered his head, and he knew it wasn't Kyuubi.

'_Who the hell are you?'_

'_I can't believe you forgot my voice already...'_

'…_Holy shit, Haku!?'_

**xXxXxXx**

Tis just the beginning!!

Tell me if you like this idea or not, I just sort of came up with it. Besides, I think it's pretty damn original!!

_**PLEASE REVIEW!! I keep getting people favriting my stories, but not leaving a review. It annoys me, it's like a pet peeve. Hell, you could just put ':favorites:' as a review, I don't mind!!**_

Talk to you later!

Kuro-kun


	2. Chapter 2

**Final Lifeline**

**By KuroInu579**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

_**Chapter Two:**_

Kakashi looked at Naruto with a raised eyebrow. "Pardon?"

"Erhm…I asked…If I could have the scroll?" Naruto said, though he wasn't as sure as before.

'_You don't sound to sure of yourself, Naruto-kun.'_

'_shut up!'_

"Why would you want the _Kubikiri Hōchō_?" Kakashi asked, trying to comprehend the sudden interest expressed by his student.

"Erhm…I feel I owe Haku?" Naruto offered, though it sounded more like a question. Kakashi sighed, and shook his head.

"Unfortunately, that's not up to me," He said, "It's up to the Hokage. This belonged to an S rank missing nin. I'm sure that Kiri will want it back…"

"That sword belongs to Zabuza-sama!"

His team looked at him, confused, and Naruto blinked in surprise. That had not been his thoughts, those were Haku's!

"-Sama?" Kakashi questioned, confused.

"Erhm…Sorry, It kinda slipped out," Naruto murmured, "But that sword didn't belong to Kiri, it belonged to Zabuza, and the one who was closest to Zabuza was Haku, and he should get it, but he's dead, and I was the closest to Haku, meaning it goes to me!" Naruto's chest inflated with his reasoning. Kakashi was silent, before sighing, and nodding a bit.

"I'll ask the Hokage. If he agrees to your logic, it's all yours," Kakashi said, before turning around, "Come on, we're late enough as it is. The other two looked at Naruto confused, before following their sensei. Naruto sighed, before following their example.

_Dammit, Why the hell are you in my head?_

_I don't know exactly, but I have a theory…_

_Well!?_

_When Kakashi used the transfer technique, my soul had not completely left my body. So, as my chakra was pulled out, so was the final portion of my soul._

…_okay…is that it?_

_All that I know. I don't know if there are any other side effects, but I guess we'll find out on our own, ne?_

_Yeah, I guess_

For the whole trip back, both Sakura and Sasuke would glance at Naruto, confusion clear in either their eyes, or their expressions. Sakura's eyes were slightly narrowed, and she would gnaw on her bottom lip, while Sasuke was simply looking at him more then usual, showing he was thinking of the blond jinchuriki. _Why are they staring at me? _Naruto wondered, mostly too himself, _Do I have something on my face?_ He never got his answer, as they finally entered the village. By then, he had decided to tell Oji-san about this side effect. Maybe the old man would know about something…?

It took thirty minutes for Kakashi to tell the Hokage about the mission, and by the end, Sarutobi didn't look too pleased.

"Kakashi, do you know of any possible side effects to that jutsu you used on Naruto?" Kakashi grinned, rubbing the back of his head.

"I didn't quite catch that part of the explanation…" the Jounin said, "But it couldn't be anything too bad…"

"Um, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked, slightly raising his hand, "Um…I think you need to know something about the side effects…"

"Hm? Nani?"

"Well, when you transported Haku's chakra into me, you accidentally grabbed a bit of his soul…I hear his voice in my head…"

"See, Kakashi?" Sarutobi asked, "This is why you pay attention to the whole explanation,"

"Maa, Oji-san, do you know the other side effects?!" Naruto inquired, his eyes wide. The old man sighed.

"Well, if Haku had a chakra affinity, you would also gain the affinity, adding on to your own natural affinity," The professor lectured, "Otherwise, the side effects are still unknown, but you need to be careful, anyways. He may not mean to, but Haku could very well possibly take over your body."

_I would never!_

_Shush!!_

Sasuke smirked slightly, "Well, dobe, looks like you have finally gone crazy, hearing voices in your head,"

"Shut it, Emo bastard!!"

**xXxXx**

Naruto stared into his ramen, mind swirling as he tried to sort it all, trying to grasp everything. What would be good about Haku in his head? Well, one is that he, technically, still had a friend, two, Haku had given him an affinity, three, he had a more experienced nin to help guide him…and four? Well, He'd just have to write everything down when he got home…

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?" Ayame asked, eyebrows creased in worry, "You still have ramen left…"

"Maa, Sorry, Ayame nee!" Naruto said loudly, before he continued to slurp up his beloved ramen, "I was just thinking!" the ramen chef looked at him for a second, before shrugging, and preparing more Ramen. Naruto, while he slurped up his food, continued to think on the subject, trying to sort it all yet again.

When he got home after eating five more bowls of Ramen, he almost immediately fell asleep, and awoke the next morning, not remembering a single bit of his dream. With a loud yawn, he lazily got dressed, brushed his teeth, and ate before he began the long trek to the bridge, where his team would meet up. He arrived a bit before his team mates, and he sighed, before pulling himself up onto the rail, balancing himself carefully.

_You're awfully quiet this morning, Naruto-kun._

_Nothing to Talk about, _The blond countered, his left hand moving absent mindedly against the smooth red wood, drawing unknown invisible designs. He was there for at least fifteen minutes, before he heard Sakura chatting happily with a silent Uchiha. Naruto started, as he realized that both of his friends gave of an odd color around their forms. Sasuke's was a dark gray, while Sakura's was, oddly enough, a bright pink.

_The hell?_

_I believe you are seeing their aura's, Naruto-kun_

Naruto didn't reply, but he knew one thing for sure; when he had the time, he was going to the library, and looking up those colors! But, for now, he would have to deal with it. "Oi, teme, what took you so long?"

"None of your business, Naruto-dobe," the Uchiha retorted, his aura flaring a bit with a happier color, though it was so brief, Naruto couldn't catch it. He shrugged it off, when Sasuke began leaning against the railing, and Sakura chatting with the Uchiha, though the conversation was a one-sided one. The three found themselves fidgeting, after setting still for an hour, waiting for their sensei. Finally, just as Naruto opened his mouth to complain, the Jounin poof-ed into existence.

"Yo!" he said kindly, waving his hand.

"You're late!" Sakura and Naruto yelled,

"Maa, gomen, I walked under a ladder, so I had to-"

"Lies!!" the two yelled again, before the Jounin sighed, and got down to business.

"We need to go do some missions, now, so head to the Hokage tower," he said, and Naruto noticed that his aura was an electric blue.

"Yatta! Maybe we're going to guard a princess, or save a village from destruction!" Naruto yelled, pumping his fists in the air as four hurried after the excited blond, a bit annoyed, but overall used to the blonds exciting energy. His excitement only seemed to quadruple as they actually got their mission.

"Well, since you all were so late today, we're out of D-ranked missions…" the Hokage said, "So, It's another C-rank for you-"

"Yatta!!" Naruto cried, pumping his fists in the air, "So what're we doing, huh?"

"Well…the mission itself should be rather simple, but everything isn't completely clear, which is why I chose you all. You have experience with incorrect information, and should be able to handle anything, especially with Kakashi as your sensei. All the information is in here," he motioned to the scroll, "and you will be joined by team eight for their tracking abilities. Unfortunately, they will head out tomorrow, and you will meat up in Hanoi, a small town a mile away from your mission," The Hokage tossed the scroll to Kakashi, who caught it gracefully, "Any objections?" When none came, the elderly man smiled, "You leave tonight at six o'clock, and you should reach Hanoi in no time"

"Hai!" The team replied, though everyone's voice had different inflections. Naruto was pumped, Sasuke indifferent, Kakashi lazy, and Sakura nervous. The Hokage mentally sighed as the group left, leaving Kakashi to fill his students in.

As they walked, Kakashi looked at the scroll, storing it all to memory, before passing it to his students, starting with Sasuke, and began to explain, "A small village outside of Hanoi is being terrorized by a small gang, a few bandits, and some missionaries, nothing too big. Our job is to eliminate them. Now, I want you all to be able to memorize a scroll ASAP, sometimes in a split second. You never know when a mission may start." That being said, Sasuke activated his Sharingan, coveting the writing to memory, and handed it to the Haruno. She stared at it for a few seconds, before passing it to Naruto. It was in his hands for a second or two when Haku spoke up.

_I have it memorized, you can pass it on._

_I need to memorize it, Haku, or I'll never get any better, _Naruto sighed, before continuing to scan the paper. It took a bit longer then the others, but once he felt he had it sufficiently memorized, he tossed it at the back of the Jounins head, who caught it easily. Naruto sighed; he had really wanted it to hit him. The three departed with their usual ways, each off to gather their materials, and rest up.

Naruto stared at his cealing, thinking of nothing, when Haku's voice entered his head again.

_You need to change clothes._

_Well, that wasn't random at all, _the Uzumaki retorted sarcastically, _what the hell do you mean?_

_Your jumpsuit screams 'I'm over here, Kill me!!' Naruto-kun. You need something darker._

_Oh yeah, well Sakura-chan wears red!_

_She doesn't want to be respected, now, dose she?_

…_I guess you have a point…but what's in it for me?_

_I'll train you for a while._

Naruto snorted, _What could you teach me, now that you're just a voice in my head?_

_Theory, a few jutsu, I could easily project images into your mind…_

…_deal._

**xXxXx**

_Okay, this is what I have…criticism is welcome, just PLEASE LEAVE REVEIWS!!_

_**My pet peeve is when someone places me on alert, yet leaves no comment on the story. It annoys me, and delays my updates!**_

_Ja ne!_

_Kuro-kun_


	3. Chapter 3

**Final Lifeline**

**By KuroInu579**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**PLEASE READ A/N AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CHAPTER.**

_**Chapter Three:**_

Naruto was bored out of his mind.

His squad had arrived at the town around one in the morning, and they all slept until nine AM in a nice hotel. It was currently twelve in the afternoon and for the past three hours, the blond had been staring at the ceiling, and bouncing a rubber ball Kakashi had tossed him repeatedly. He was glad that Kakashi allowed him to lounge around in his room, so he wouldn't get too terribly bored…unfortunately that didn't work too well, did it? It was then Haku decided to give him a helpful input;

_Did you know that if a human is exposed to the same sound for a set amount of time, they go insane?_

Unfortunately, the complete and utter randomness of the statement caused Naruto to forget to grab the ball on its rebound, and in turn, it hit him in the forehead. Kakashi looked over at him with a raised eyebrow, in the middle of turning his page. As Naruto began to rub his head with a frown on his face, Kakashi regained composure, and finished turning the page, before speaking,

"What did Haku say, this time?" he asked nonchalantly, as if this was a normal thing.

"Nothing," Naruto murmured, "Hey, Kakashi-sensei, if you're exposed to a continuous sound for a long time, will you go insane?"

"Yes, it's an interrogation method that is quite common," the Hatake said simply, "Why?"

"…No reason," Naruto murmured, before returning to his bouncing. Kakashi shrugged to himself, before reading again. The quiet lasted for about two full minutes, when Naruto snapped.

"I am so bored!!" He complained, rubbing the heels of his hand into his eyes.

"Then go out." Kakashi said monotonously.

"But what if I get lost!?" Naruto cried, throwing out his arms, "I'll never complete the mission and become Hokage!!"

"Take Sasuke with you." Naruto smirked devilishly at the idea.

"Wonderful idea, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto exclaimed, bouncing up and off of the bed, and abandoning his rubber ball, "I'll be back later!" That being said, he rushed off to find his team mate. Kakashi sighed in relief.

"Thank god, I thought I was going to go insane with all that bouncing…"

"Why should I go with you, dobe?" Sasuke asked. The Uchiha was currently setting in the small lobby, sipping some green tea.

"Because I need to get out of here," Naruto exclaimed, causing Sasuke to wince slightly, "I'm so bored, I feel like I'm going insane!!"

"Hn…fine, I'll go," Sasuke said, finishing of his tea, and disposing of the cup, "Come on, dobe, lead the way."

"Yatta!!"

**xXxXx**

Naruto was quite proud of himself, if he did say so. He had managed to drag the Uchiha all over town, and while he still had a bit of energy to burn, his Uchiha friend looked like he could commit murder.

"Come one, Sasuke! I have to go to one more place!!" Naruto whined, clasping his hands in front of him, "And if I get lost-"

"Yeah, yeah, you'll never get back to Konoha, and you'll never become Hokage," Sasuke grumbled, hands stuffed deep into his pockets, "Okay, I get it. Let's go…"

"Yatta!" Naruto whooped, jumping up, before wincing slightly. He had forgotten a bit of the side effects, and had been hyper a good portion of the day…oh well, it's not like Kyuubi would honestly let him die…right? Without another thought, Naruto raced off, though still at a reasonable pace, to find his goal. It only took five minutes, and he was in front of a clothing store. Sasuke blinked.

"Naruto-dobe, why are you going into a clothes store?"

"Haku made a deal with me! If I change my outfit, he'll teach me some techniques!"

"And now the voices are training you," Sasuke murmured, rolling his eyes, "You really are insane…"

"Haha, very funny, teme," Naruto retorted, before entering the store, Sasuke following with a sigh.

"Why couldn't you buy some clothes in Konoha?" he asked, absent-mindedly kicking a stone on the way in.

"Well…all of the good stores don't like me in their stores" Naruto said, frowning.

"Why not?"

"Er…all those pranks I've been playing, they're scared I'll ruin the clothes," Naruto lied easily, before waving his hand, "It's no problem, honestly,"

"Whatever," Sasuke mumbled, before following the blond around. He was silent as he watched Naruto looking at the clothes, before he spoke up seeing Naruto reach towards a yellow top.

"You need to get something darker, and some earthy tones," He counseled, "You need to fit in with your surroundings," Naruto frowned, before sighing.

"I guess you're right…" he murmured, "But there are no good clothes in this rack!"

"Dope, this is the clearance rack, the good clothes are in the back, over their," Sasuke said, pointing, "Come on, this is going to be painful, isn't it?" Naruto smirked,

"You know a lot about fashion, don't you? Are you sure you're not gay, at least maybe bi?" Sasuke scowled.

"Dobe, do you want me to help you look professional?"

"Fine, fine," Naruto murmured, before following the stoic Uchiha. It took a while, but the Uchiha finally pointed out three different shirts. One was a simple mesh shirt, the other a black shirt with fishnet details, and the other was a dark brown.

"Choose a shirt," he instructed. Naruto grumbled, before pulling the black shirt out, and looked at Sasuke pointedly. The Uchiha groaned, before continuing, "Is it your size?"

"Huh? Oh…Yeah," he reassured, after checking the tag, "Now what?"

"You pick out pants," Sasuke coached, pointing to three more options. One was a pair of blue cut-offs, then black full length jeans, and then brown, tighter pants, "Any of these would go, so choose whatever." Naruto seemed a bit more careful, before he picked out the blue cut-offs. Apparently, he wanted at least something like his old clothes, and since he couldn't have orange, he chose blue. Sasuke sighed, before pointing at a shoes rack, "Do you need new shoes…?" The Uchiha glanced at his friends shoes, and grimaced. They were worn, and ugly, He sighed, nodded, and then walked over to the rack, expecting the Uzumaki to follow.

It didn't take long for Naruto to pick out a pair of black traditional nin shoes. Sasuke was a bit surprised, since these were actually off good quality, and Naruto didn't look like the kind to look at quality.

"Is that it, teme, or do you want me to get a nice tuxedo, maybe even some hair pins?" Naruto asked sarcastically, erasing any praise he might have had for the genin's good sense.

"Shut up; just go pay so I can get the hell out of here."

"Yah, yah, I know," Naruto mumbled, before going up to the counter. Sasuke noticed that Naruto looked a bit uncomfortable the way the cashier treated him, but Sasuke found that odd. The cashier was smiling politely, speaking politely, was being, over all, very polite. He then remembered that Naruto wasn't used to politeness, and was probably a bit unused to it.

"But why?" he murmured to himself.

"Why what, teme?" the Uzumaki asked, "Why do you keep getting this funny feeling when you look at my wonderful ass? Well, I think we can sum that up in two very simple words: you're gay."

As the two left the store, Naruto was nursing a large bump on his head, and Sasuke looked unusually pleased. They both managed to get back to the hotel, and as they reached their floor, they saw Sakura waiting outside Sasuke's door impatiently. She immediately brightened when she saw her beloved Uchiha.

"Sasuke-kun, Where were you?" she asked politely, albeit fan girlishly, "I got back from the bath house almost two hours ago!!"

"Hn." He grunted, before walking right past her, and into his room. Sakura frowned, before sighing. She walked off too her own room, which she would share with Hinata. Soon, Naruto would be moved to Sasuke's room, and out of his own, and Kiba and Shino would bunk, while Kurenai and Kakashi would share rooms. Naruto stood in the hall for a moment, looking at his teammates doors, before sighing, and entering his own room, and changing into his pajamas.

It was only six in the afternoon.

**xXxXx**

"Ohayo, Kakashi-san," Kurenai greeted politely, her team standing behind her.

"Ohayo, Kurenai-san," the copy-nin returned. His team was in a similar position to the genjutsu mistresses.

"Ohayo," the teams both greeted simultaneously, soft bows given. Their greetings now over, they returned to the hotel, and met in the Jounins room, preparing a plan.

"Supposedly, there are thirty Mercenaries, and five bandits. We don't know the exact location, which is why Kurenai's team will help us find it," Kakashi instructed, "I think the best way is to see if any Hostages are present, and if there are, send in a few stealthier members to sneak them out. Then, we eliminate our targets."

"If there are no Hostages?" Sakura inquired, attempting to be prepared for anything.

"Then ambush them. Naruto's Kage bunshin should take care of that," Sasuke offered, and he smirked when Kakashi nodded.

"Err, I have an idea…" Naruto said, raising a hand.

"You or Haku?" Sasuke taunted. The blond glowered, before answering.

"Me, dumb ass. What if we wait till they go on a raid, or something, and then have one team intercept them on their way to their targets, while the other team takes care of any stragglers, and help hostages escape?" A few people stared at him in shock, while Hinata blushed, mentally praising him. "Nani?"

"That's actually a good idea," Kiba said, blinking a bit, before his grinned, "Who knew you'd have it in yah?"

"Anyway," Kurenai interrupted, "We need take today easy, before we head on to out next location tomorrow morning. I think we should all retire around nine, and get moving at six."

"Hai!"

**xXxXx**

They next day went by smoothly, everyone getting along fairly well, and everyone reserving their energy for the travel to come. They all retired around eight thirty, and awoke at five. Overall, the trip was very quick. They were all running at an easy pace, and were half way there when Hinata stopped them, Byakugan activated.

"A-anou, Kurenai-sensei, there is a child up ahead…s-she doesn't look too good, and looks h-hurt…"

"Thank you," Kurenai said, "Should we stop?"

"Hai! Naruto said quickly, loudly, "She could be in trouble, or she could die!!" Hinata felt her heart swell at his kindness, "Besides, she could be one of the Hostages!"

"We go," Kakashi summed up, "Naruto has a valid point. Approach with caution, though, we don't know what might happen." The others nodded, hurryin over. Kurenai was the one who took the front when they approached the girl, and she grimaced a bit.

The girl couldn't be a day over six years old. She was completely bare, save for a pair of tattered panties. Busies covered her chest, some an ugly yellow, and they contrasted greatly with her pale white skin. She looked sickly, her skin gaunt, and pasty. There were also various sized cuts along her body. They noticed most of the bruises were on her legs, as well. Her hair was a stringy dark blond, and her eye's a deep green. She took one look at Kurenai, and her eyes filled with tears.

"Okaa-san!"

Everyone was completely surprised, and watched as the girl continued to cry.

"T-Tou-san said you wouldn't come back!" she whimpered, rubbing at her eyes, "He said he k-killed you!!"

"Kurenai, is this your kid?" Kakashi murmured.

"I've never had a kid in my life." She returned, before kneeling in front of the girl, "Er…Gomen, but I'm not your-" She had to stop, since the girl flung her self into her arms, sobbing.

"Never leave me again, kaa-san!!"

No one had the heart to deny the girls pleas.

**xXxXx**

**Okay, I'm planning on giving Naruto a bloodline, but it will be a relatively powerful one. A few people might know of it, since I used (a more dangerous/powerful/risky version) it for an OC in my other story 'Inside of Insanity'. Simply, it's so Haku's 'soul transfer' will have more affect then it currently has.**

**Could you please tell me if you would like him to have a bloodline, or if you would rather him stay without one? **

**And a forewarning, there will be two fairly important OC's in this story, along with Character Death. **

**Another thing I wish to know about is the story's rating. I'm planning on a few things for the future, but I am afraid they will earn this story a M rating. If you would rather keep this story rated t, then please inform me.**

**Thank you all for reading, and all of your inputs are greatly appreciated.**

**B.E.N**

**P.S.**

**Please tell me if I did a good job with the charecters personalities.**

**_EDIT:_**

**_Please put your vote for the bloodline in my profile poll!! Thank you!!_**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Final Lifeline_**

**_By KuroInu579_**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**PLEASE READ A/N AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CHAPTER.**

_**Chapter Four:**_

"Mai-chan, can you tell us what happened to you?" Kurenai asked softly, a hand resting gently on the girls shoulder. The blond nodded, before speaking softly,

"Otou-san would hurt me and my nee-sans…and then he would make them bleed…and do things for him and his friends…" she said, her voice sounding innocent.

"Where are they?" Sakura asked from her position beside Kurenai. They all decided it would be best if the Kunoichi were to take care of this, seeing as how she might be scared by the men.

"Up the road," she said, swinging her arms back and forth, "They live in a bunch of tents, and they leave at night to party, but they return with more friends for me to play with, and a bunch of new things. A lot of them are really shiny, but when I try to look at it, Kagura-nee pulls me away saying I'll get hurt."

"I think we've found our culprits," Kakashi murmured. Kurenai nodded, but continued to talk to the child,

"How many nee-sans do you have?" she asked.

"Oh, they're not my real siblings; we all come from different places, and go through the same things. There's about fifteen, and since tou-san and his friends are out now, they told me to run away, and they stayed behind, 'cuz they can't move." They heard the shuffling of fabric, and a few people were shocked as Naruto pulled his old orange jacket out of his bag, and handed it to the young girl. His face was strained, and a muscle in his jaw was twitching dangerously.

"Here," he said, though his voice was a bit strained, "Take this, you're going to get sick." Mai hesitated, before grabbing it and slipping on, getting Hinata to zip it up. Her eyes sparkled with adoration, and too many peoples shock, she hugged Naruto around the leg, her eyes filled with tears.

"Arigato nii-san!!" She exclaimed, "I've never gotten anything before!" Naruto blinked in surprise, before he patted her head, and ruffled her hair.

"It's nothing…" he murmured, his face turning a light pink. She looked up at him, her eyes wide, and full of joy. She suddenly hesitated, before speaking again,

"You…have tou-sans eyes," she murmured, but she just smiled again, "You're going to help nee-san, right?"

"Yeah, we will." He answered, "Kakashi-sensei, we need to split up. Some need to help get the hostages out, while some need to take out the mercenaries."

"Kurenai, do you think you can take Sakura, Naruto, and Hinata to help get the Hostages?" Kakashi asked, "Kiba, Shino, Sasuke, and I will take care of the mercenaries."

"Hai," she said, with a nod, "We'll take Mai with us, so she can send us in the right direction." There was only a brief nod of agreement, and they all split up, each hurrying to their destination.

**xXxXx**

"The camp is up ahead," Hinata whispered, "there are t-ten men left behind, and it looks like f-fourteen hostages…ten girls, and four boys…"

"Naruto, you will help me take out the guards. Sakura, you and Hinata, take Mai, and help the hostages," Kurenai instructed, "I hear you can make Kage bunshin, Naruto?"

"Hai, but I can't make too many," he replied, "But it'll be enough to take out these guys." He clinched, and unclenched his fingers, and he felt his body surge with his chakra. He may not have an unlimited amount anymore, but he still had more then average. This should be a cake walk.

_You're going to have to kill them._ Haku cautioned.

_I know, Haku…they deserve it. Fucking rapists…_

His eyes narrowed, when he heard Hinata gasp slightly, "What!?"

"Th-the guard took a girl…and he…he…" She didn't finish, she didn't have to. Naruto felt a surge of unknown chakra, neither his nor the kyuubi's, and suddenly he wasn't quite himself anymore. His vision seemed a bit more trained, and he felt as if he could through a kunai blind folded, and hit the offender dead on. In fact, that was exactly what he wanted to do…

"Naruto, come on," Kurenai instructed, "Let's go."

"_Hai." _That wasn't his voice, he knew that for sure, but honestly, he didn't give a damn. Kurenai looked at him, and stifled a gasp.

"Naruto…your eyes are brown." Naruto showed no acknowledgement, but a small nod. The two then began to hurry forewords, Naruto forming his hand signs.

"_Kage Bunshin," _he whispered, and five Naruto's, each with brown eyes, appeared beside him, and they hurried to their destination. Kurenai was silent, but knew that Kakashi had some questions to answer.

The clones burst into the encampment, and each took down a guard like it was effortless. The real Naruto hurried into the tent, where he saw the man Hinata had informed him of earlier. He was tearing off the girls' tattered skirt, his back to him, and her shirt already off, when he turned, and saw the blond jinchuriki standing there. He had no weapons, and looked like a normal teenaged boy, save for his well defined muscles.

"The hell-!?" he was cut off, as a large spike of ice went through his chest, coating the crystalline structure a pretty pink, and spraying blood onto the girl under him. She screamed, and Naruto pulled her out from under the man. He let go of her hand when she was outside the tent, before he rushed back to Kurenai, who impaled two bandits at once, with two kunai.

"Naruto, are you alright?" she asked, before kicking another bandit in the head, and impaling his chest.

"_The man is dead."_ He said, He looked over, memories of one of his clones' recent destruction appearing in his head, and saw a bandit running towards the back of Sakura, who was carefully releasing a captive. He felt the air around him moisten, and ten ice senbon formed, before speeding off to their destination. They hit their mark perfectly, and the man dropped to his knees. Sakura turned, and gasped. She looked at Naruto, eyes wide, before she shakily turned towards the hostages, and continued to release them. Hinata was near, quickly releasing more hostages with quick jyuken strikes.

Naruto gained the memories of his clones, and discovered that all but one of the bandits were dead. His team mates were approaching him, the hostages released, while Kurenai held one of the bandits off in the forest, for interrogation. Sakura looked at him, her eyes wide, and tinged with fear as she observed her team mate.

"Naruto…You used the Hyoton…" she whispered, and she was amazed as her team mates eyes faded into the lovable blue they all knew. When the brown faded, so did his emotionless mask.

"Nani?" He asked, and he seemed to remember in an instant, "the hell!?"

"Anou…N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked softly. He looked at her, his head tilted to the side in curiosity.

"Hai, Hinata-chan?"

"Anou…Y-You did really w-well, today…" she murmured, shuffling her feet. Naruto grinned widely, and laughed, rubbing the back pf his head.

"You did too, Hinata!" He said, head still on the back of his head, "You were really good at releasing the captives!" The Hyuuga blushed, but gave a soft nod.

_What the hell was that?_

_I think you tapped into my chakra…it's started to form its own prison in your body, much like the kyuubi…so I think my soul is slowly gaining shape, and so it needs a place to settle for a while. I'll tell you if I find anything else…but I honestly have no idea as to why you could use the Hyoton._

Naruto turned, and watched as the others jumped through the canopy, each unharmed, and grinning…well, Sasuke was smirking, and Kiba was grinning. Shino and Kakashi were impassive. The Jounin looked at the hostages, and sighed.

"Do you all have places to go?" He asked, not sure what to do with them. Most of them nodded, but those that didn't were quickly offered homes, save for Mai, and another woman, about 17 years old, who had dark brown hair, and amber colored eyes. Kakashi was silent, as he took this all in. "What about you?" he asked, nodding to the burnet,

"Ah! Err, my name is Kagura!" She said, a bit clumsily, "I'm Mai's elder sister, and, err…I was hoping I could come with you, because…well, Mai seems a bit attached to Kurenai-san and Naruto-san…I can't just leave her behi-" A kunai went hurtling through the canopy, and grazed the brunettes' cheek. Her eye's widened, and she froze. She quickly back up into the group of captives behind her, and the group were soon being guarded by Hinata, Sakura, Shino, and Kiba.

Meanwhile, Naruto, Kurenai, Sasuke, and Kakashi each pulled out a kunai, and waited for the offender to step out of the bushes.

He had shaggy, untamed black hair, and bright blue eyes. He was certainly dressed, and armed, like a shinobi, wearing a black mesh shirt, a Jounin vest, and brown baggy pants. He had standard shinobi equipment, and around his neck was an odd headband with a spiral, and no mark was through it. His eyes flickered over to the now free hostages, and they hardened into a glare.

"Why did you release my toys?" he asked his voice deep, and menacing. Everyone noticed Naruto's chakra flaring up, and he caught the men's attention. The man frowned, and took in the boys features slowly, carefully, before he seemed to form a conclusion.

"You are an Uzumaki."

No one spoke, but Naruto tightened his grip on his kunai, his knuckles turning white, "How the hell do you know that?" the man chuckled, as if Naruto was an idiot, and shook his head.

"You think I wouldn't know the clans of my village?" He questioned, amused, but he moved on, "Unfortunately, it was destroyed."

"Are you speaking of Whirlpool?" Kakashi questioned, his voice hard, and he was clearly not messing around.

"Yes, I am," the man said, "But enough small talk," He was silent, thinking, before he spoke again, "Give me back my daughters, and I'll set everyone else free. I don't need so many toys, now that all my men were killed." They all caught the strange inflection of his voice, and Naruto held back a growl.

"You can't control what they do!" Kiba said loudly. The man frowned, before he suddenly disappeared, and reappeared with Kagura in his tight grasp.

"They are my property; I can do what ever the hell I want with them." His tongue flicked out onto the girls, cheek, and it seemed that Kagura's eyes suddenly went blank. They hazed over, making them look a dark, muddy brown. It reminded them of a dirty lake. It seemed what had happened come to light. She was blocking it out. She had obviously learned that in these situations, to travel into her happy place, to her sanctuary, and hide while her father, if he had the right to be called that, did whatever the hell he wanted to her. The jinchuriki was disgusted.

And then he blacked out.

**xXxXx**

"Uhh…" he groaned, holding his head in his hands, as he attempted to open his eyes. He finally succeeded, and he noticed that very little light was filtering through the windows. He looked at the clock, and saw it read 5:39 AM. He grimaced, and sat up a bit. He tried to recognize where he was, but it seemed usless. He remembered nothing, but the man…and Kagura. He growled, and his fist tightened. He tried to push it out of his mind, and in turn, he remembered what this room reminded him of.

Its walls were very pale, and his bed sheets were coarse, with odd abstract designs on it. He noticed nice framed pictures of odd things, from fruits to empty staircases, His bedside table was very angular, and a light wood color. He finally came to the conclusion that he was in a hotel. He sighed, and rubbed his temples.

"What the hell happened?" he murmured. He continued to sit there, when what seemed like hours later, the door to his room slowly opened, and artificial light filtered in. He noticed, with difficulty (the light was quite unexpected) a mop of dark colored hair backing into his room, before closing the door, and turning on the lights. He blinked a lot, and heard a soft 'eep'.

"N-Naruto-kun!" the person stuttered, and it took a second for him to place her voice.

"Hey, Hinata-chan," he greeted, before giving a soft yawn.

"D-did I wake you up?" She asked politely, sounding worried.

"Nah, I've been up for a while," He said, "Hey…What happened?" the Hyuuga started, her eyes wide.

"N-Nani? D-Don't you remember?"

"Iie, I don't. Gomen," Naruto answered. Hinata seemed a bit nervous about something, before she answered.

"Ano…y-you got really angry…and y-your eyes changed to brown again…and your c-chakra was visible. Y-You the started fighting and your chakra kept everyone back…It was acting like a b-barrier," Hinata looked down, her fingers pressing together gently, "You k-killed him…" Naruto's eyes widened.

"Nani!?" He asked loudly. Hinata winced, before speaking quickly.

"G-gomen, Naruto-kun! I-I…"

"It's not your fault," Naruto said quickly, "I just…don't remember what happened," he frowned, his eyebrows furrowing together, "I don't understand why I don't."

"Ah…Gomen, I w-wish I could help you…" Hinata said, blushing slightly as she continued to gaze at her feet.

"But you did!" Naruto exclaimed, "You helped me know what happened!"

"Anou…i-it was nothing…" she murmured, "Y-You had the right to k-know…" Naruto smiled at the stuttering girl, before turning and looking out the window.

"Anou…N-Naruto-kun?" she asked softly, "M-May I tell you something?" Naruto glanced briefly over his shoulder.

"Huh? Yeah, sure. What is it?"

"W-Well…I think that you…that you did a really good job yesterday. It must have been h-hard killing all those p-people…And I think that y-you shouldn't beat yourself up a-about what happened…" she said, her voice lowering with each phrase. Naruto smiled brightly, before replying,

"Arigatou, Hinata-chan," he thanked softly, "It means a lot to hear that…thank you…"

"A-Ah…you're welcome…" She looked away slightly, her face beet red. Naruto smiled a bit, before turning completely to his window, using his peripheral vision to keep watch on the heiress. She continued to look away, her face still a pretty pink. Hi frowned slightly. She was nervous, that much he could tell.

_Why? Is it because…because I killed someone?_ He felt his hopes suddenly crash to the ground, as if he jumped from a thirty story building. _She hates me, doesn't she?_

_Naruto-kun, I don't think that's it._

_Then what is it!? _He almost screamed this out loud, and he was glad he didn't. That would be awkward…Haku sighed, before replying,

_Think of how Sakura acts around Sasuke. You'll find your answer there._

_Maa…You're no help._ He pulled himself back to the present, before he decided to speak to the Hyuuga.

"Hinata…If you want to go, you can," he said softly, "I won't mind."

"N-No!" she answered quickly, before blushing, and shuffling her weight from left to right, "I mean…I-I don't mind staying here…" Naruto smiled softly, but made no move to reply as he continued to look out the window. Hinata hesitantly sat in the armchair beside the blond, pulling her knees up to her chest, and resting her head on said knees.

They both watched the sun rise slowly above the horizon.

**xXxXx**

"Kakashi?"

The masked Jounin looked up, and saw Kurenai sticking her head in his doorway, her face barely portraying her confusion and worry, "Hai?"

"I have a few questions to ask you…about Naruto," she said hesitantly. With that, Kakashi closed his book, and waited as the genjutsu mistress stepped into the room, closing the door behind her, "Earlier, you said something that sparked my interest…"

"And what, pray tell, could that have been?"

"Well, when Naruto gave his idea on how to approach the camp, you said, 'Was it your idea, or Haku's?", Tell me, what did you mean by this?" Kurenai rose an eyebrow, and patiently awaited an answer. Kakashi was silent for a moment, before answering.

"Well, I guess there's no use hiding it. On our previous mission, Naruto's chakra was almost completely drained, and for some odd reason, it kept going down," he explained, "So I used an older jutsu to transfer some foreign chakra into his chakra coils. Unfortunately, a piece of the donors' soul was transferred into his body. So, Naruto now has a little voice in his head," Kakashi smiled brightly, "Lets call it his 'guardian angel', ne?" Kurenai mentally rolled her eyes at the copy-nin.

"Also, I had another question,"

"Nani?"

"Naruto seemed a bit…ruthless when he killed off the mercenaries. Do you think that the Kyuubi might have influenced him?" Kurenai seemed worried, and she unconsciously bit her bottom lip. Kakashi sighed.

"That's the weird thing," he said, "I didn't sense an ounce of the kyuubi's chakra throughout the whole encounter. Also, when I was transferring Haku's chakra into him, it appeared that the Kyuubi's presence was almost invisible. You'll notice that the birth marks on his face are also fading," Kakashi opened his book again, before he spoke, "I also find your lack of faith in my student concerning. Naruto has a lot of control, and loves the village to much for him to even think of letting the seal break." Kurenai took that as a sign of dismissal, so she crossed the floor, and closed the door behind her, leaving the copy nin to himself.

Down the hell, in his own room, Kiba's eyes widened considerably.

"Kyuubi…?"

**xXxXx**

_**Okay, here's the latest chapter!**_

_**I got the poll results all finished, and seventy percent said that Naruto should have a bloodline, twenty percent said no, and eight percent were indifferent. I don't quite see how that adds up, but whatever.**_

_**If you voted for him not having a bloodline, please give it a chance! I know it's not overly powerful, and I know for a fact that it's not a major part of the story. It just adds a bit to the story.**_

_**Thank you for reading, and please review!!**_

_**B.E.N**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Final Lifeline**_

_**By KuroInu579**_

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

_**Chapter Five:**_

Kiba stared at the wall, as he tried to piece his thoughts together. The Kyuubi, Naruto? What? What did the Kyuubi have to do with the blond bundle of energy? He began thinking back on the history lessons he actually listened to. When did the Kyuubi attack? He was silent, before the answer hit him like a ton of bricks. October Tenth. Wasn't that Naruto's birthday?

Was Naruto the Kyuubi? As soon as that thought hit him, he shook it off. No way! The Kyuubi was a monster, and Naruto was one of the nicest people you could meet! (besides himself, of course) So that item was off the list. Another thought hit him, and he decided that this was the only one that was plausible

The Kyuubi was sealed into Naruto.

Kiba let that sink in, before he nodded. Now, what to do about it… Someone who had no knowledge would assume that Naruto was the Kyuubi, or that the Kyuubi was influencing him. But Kiba was smarter then that. He remembered in the library, he was bored and read a book on sealing. (And yes, he actually was interested in a few subjects) He remembered a bit saying that only really weak seals could allow its container to be influenced. And he also knew that the Yondaime was excellent at seals, meaning it had to have been a hell of a strong seal.

The Inuzuka finally decided on one thing.

He wouldn't tell anyone about this. Naruto would have told if he wanted people to know, and since he didn't, he obviously didn't want the publicity. So he would (for once) respect the Uzumaki's privacy. He decided then that Naruto was one of the strongest people he knew, and he deserved respect. He promised himself on his Inuzuka blood that he would stand by Naruto's side.

Inuzuka's were naturally loyal. It only really surfaced when they had one to be loyal to.

.

Kiba completely ignored the odd looks he got from the two teams, as he glared at the Uchiha openly. Said Uchiha simply raised an eyebrow, and his lip twitched upward in humor, but no one really noticed. He crossed his arms, and he didn't move an inch. Akamaru stood by his side, his fur standing on end, as he also eyed the Uchiha.

"What are you doing, Kiba?" he asked, sounding slightly annoyed, "Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Maybe I've decided I'm too old for this," he said brazenly, his gaze never wavering. The Uzumaki who stood behind him looked puzzled as he watched the quarrel unfold. Sasuke scoffed,

"Really? You're suddenly more mature then me?" He seemed amused by this idea, and he chuckled to himself, "Right, of course you are. Excuse me, Kiba-_sama._" Everyone noticed the malicious intent inflicted with the honorific he tagged to his name, and everyone knew that Sasuke was aiming to press his buttons.

Normally Sasuke was a rather likeable person, if a bit arrogant, and never really tried to bug anyone. But when he found a person who was just so easily bugged, he would observe, and then at the right moment, instead of just pressing the button, he would punch it, and get it jammed, sending the person off of the deep end. Naruto, of course, was so hot headed, that it was just rather easy to bother him, so Sasuke often did so. Kiba also fell into that group, but since Sasuke didn't see much of him, he waited for a chance to strike.

So, obviously, when Kiba showed no reaction other then a muscle in his chin jumping, which Sasuke missed, they were all a bit surprised. Kiba grinned animalistically, before speaking,

"I guess it must be an Uchiha thing," He mused, his eyes gleaming wickedly. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean, 'an Uchiha thing?"

"You know, Uchiha's must like fucking with peoples minds," He said casually, "Okaa-san told me how Itachi used some weird genjutsu on you after you found the clan, and caused 'severe mental Trauma,'. So, I guess it must be an Uchiha thing," Sasuke's eyes flashed dangerously, and his hand moved quickly for his Kunai, but his sensei's hand around his wrist stopped him.

"Calm down, Sasuke," Kakashi said with nonchalance, "Don't let it bug you," the Uchiha scoffed, before jerking his arm away, and continued walking. Kurenai looked at her student with disappointment.

"You over reacted; It was just an insult," she chastised. Kiba shrugged.

"He had no right to insult him," he said simply.

"You still overstepped your bounderies," she continued, before sighing, and tilting her head in Sasuke's direction, "come on, we need to go," Everyone left, and Naruto looked at Kiba, who was placing Akamaru on his head.

"Why did you do that?" he asked, confused, "He always does that,"

"You have earned my respect," Kiba said simply, as he began following the others, "Sasuke hasn't. He has no right to insult you when you are obviously the stronger person, if not physically then mentally." Naruto raised his eyebrows slightly, before grinning a bit,

"Err, thanks Kiba, I guess," he said, rubbing the back of his head, "But how did I earn your respect?" Kiba was silent, before he lowered his voice to a strained whisper,

"I found out about the Kyuubi," he murmured, "And the fact that you go on living with all this hatred pointed at you earns my respect. Sasuke let revenge fill his mind, while you ignored it," He smiled at the stunned Jinchuriki, "I'm not going to tell anyone, it's not my story to tell. But from now on you have my respect,"

Naruto's eyes clouded up, and he smiled softly, not the usual bright cheery one he offered everyone else, "Arigatou, Kiba,"

.

It took two days of unbearable tension for the two teams to make it back into Konoha, and currently, Kakashi and Kurenai both were giving the mission report, not giving the Hokage any chance to ask for extra details. By the end, the Hokage was concentrating on a small dot on the wall left from when Konohamaru was younger, just a toddler, and had drawn on the wall with a permanent marker.

"His eye's returned to their normal color afterward?" he asked, and the two nodded. He sighed, and rubbed his temples carefully, "We'll have to find a better medic; if what you say is true, Haku might be causing a health difficulty for him,"

"What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, worry for his student setting in.

"Well, I think that Haku's soul will start trying to form its own seal, if you will. But the thing is, Haku's a human, not a large demon made almost purely of chakra. It's possible for Haku's soul to start taking some of Naruto's cells and attempting to form a body of his own. Basically, he'll be like a tumor, but we couldn't use a surgery to get him out because in a way his soul has become attached to Naruto's," He sighed and intertwined his fingers, "We'll need to do a soul transfer, but the only person I think capable of doing so would be Tsunade, and we have no way of knowing where she is. The only person that could find her would be Jiraiya,"

"He's out doing spy work, right?" Kurenai asked, head tilted to the side slightly.

"Correct, but I think he may pop in soon…" He continued quickly, not allowing any questions, "You are dismissed," As the two turned to walk away, something clicked in his mind, "Oh, and akashi," He carefully pulled out a smaller scroll, and tossed it to the Jounin who caught it easily.

"Hai, Hokage-sama?"

"Give that to Naruto for me,"

.

"WHAT KIND OF BOX IS SQUARE WITH TWO HOLES IN IT!?"

"That's the man I consider my rival!" The young Konohamaru exclaimed to his two friends, Udon and Moegi, and each were equipped with a set of green goggles atop their head. Naruto sighed in exasperation, and shook his head jadedly.

"Hey, Konohamaru, what's with the goggles?" he asked, a bit frightened by the answer.

"We decided that if we wanna be like you, we haf'ta dress like you, so were copying the old you!" he seemed strangely excited at this. The brown haired grandson looked over and saw Sakura, and tilted his head in confusion, "Hey boss, is that your girlfriend?" Naruto snorted,

"Perceptive little bastard," he muttered sarcastically, though unfortunately Sakura didn't catch said sarcasm, and sent him strait into the wall, causing a chorus of 'Naruto-nii's!' from the now distraught academy students.

"You ugly bitch!" Konohamaru yelled, and Naruto flinched, realizing his alarming mistake. He was about to open his mouth, to alert the student, but it was already much too late. Sakura, like a raving banshee, was chasing him down the street, where he connected with the leg of another shinobi, one whom Naruto hadn't the pleasure (or the displeasure) of meeting. He was garbed in a black outfit with a cat-like head-piece. His face was painted with purple markings, and on his back was something wrapped in bandages, reminding him of a mummy. Next to him was a girl with sandy blond hair, and teal colored eyes. Her hair was in four pigtails that spiked dangerously; Naruto was sure that they could take someone's eyes out. She wore a light lilac colored two piece dress, with fishnet on her arms and legs. On her back was a large metal plate of sorts.

_It's a fan _Haku said helpfully. Naruto mentally thanked him, before watching as the male picked up Konohamaru by the neck of his shirt.

"That hurt, you piece of shit," he said angrily, glaring, though his make up made it look like he was amused.

"Don't do anything, Kankuro, we're going to get in trouble," the woman cautioned, looking around nervously.

"Ah, Gomen," Sakura said politely, bowing slightly, "we were messing around, It was my fault," The two ignored her, so Naruto glared in defense.

"She apologized, I suggest you return the favor," he said, clenching his fists. He felt the air moisten around him, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw water droplets come close together only to scatter, and this became a reoccurring pattern. Kankuro smirked, before lifting the now thoroughly frightened Konohamaru into the air. Naruto's eyes narrowed and he attempted to lift his arm, only to find it stuck in place. He was startled, when Haku's voice chimed in, sounding a bit annoyed.

_They're chakra strings, used mainly by puppeteers. I would say it is safe to assume that the large thing on his back is a puppet. Seeing as how they're from sand, it probably has poison somewhere on some hidden blades._

"Thanks," He murmured aloud, catching the suna shinobi's attention. He looked up at the two again and smirked, as he sent a bit of chakra throughout his body, disrupting the connection, "I'm afraid chakra strings aren't going to work with me, Kankuro-san." He noticed that he looked surprised, and Naruto formed an ice senbon in mid air, once again catching his opponents' attention, "Put the kid down."

"Hm, leaf genin's aren't as stupid as I thought." He mused, "But you're still stupid. You think a single senbon is going to stop me?" his partner sighed.

"Oh, well, I'm not involved in this," she murmured. The puppeteer raised his fist, prepared to strike his prisoner, when both a stone and a senbon connected with his writs, the senbon disabling his wrist, and the stone halting his movements.

"Shit, that hurts," he murmured as Konohamaru fell to the ground, released from his now limp hand. He looked up, and spotted the Uchiha setting lazily on a branch, juggling two more stones.

"What're you doing in our village?" the avenger asked, ignoring the fact that Naruto had also been fairly cool. The girl sighed, before removing a pass, showing she was allowed here.

"We're here for the Chuunin Exams," she said, "We're allowed to be here,"

"I hate show-offs like you the most," Kankuro said, ignoring his partner yet again. He swiftly pulled off his puppet, and the blond blanched.

"Hey, don't tell me you're going to use Karasu!" she said, and Naruto stored the name in the back of his mind. Then, a chilling voice intervened;

"Kankuro, stop it. You are an embarrassment to our Village," the words were spoken by a heavily garbed red-head, with pupil-less light blue eyes, and without eyebrows. Over his left eye was tattooed in Kanji, 'Love'.

"Ga-Gaara…" the puppeteer stuttered, and Naruto, or was it Haku?, easily picked out the fear coming off of the two Suna nin's.

"You're pathetic," the red-dead said in return, before disappearing in a whirl of sand and re-appearing between Kankuro and the other blond, "I apologize for the disturbance," In all honesty, he didn't really sound to sorry, "We'll be on our way now,"

"Oi, what's your name?" Sasuke asked as they turned to leave. The blond blushed, and pointed to herself.

"Me? I'm Temari,"

"No, the one with the gourd," he dismissed her easily. The red-head said nothing for a moment.

"Sabaku no Gaara, And you are?"

"Uchiha Sasuke," he replied cockily, expecting his clan name to spark some sort of reaction. The red-head looked over at Naruto, before repeating his question.

"And you? What is your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," he stated easily, trying his best to be excited that this obviously strong shinobi had asked for his name. Previously stated shinobi was silent, before nodding.

"I look foreword to fighting both of you soon," He said, before turning to walk away, "Temari, Kankuro, come,"

**xXxXx**

The next day they got in at the stated time, only to be abandoned by their chronically late Jounin, witch Naruto protested against loudly, though not quite as often as others. He no longer yelled at Kakashi when he was late, and decided on glaring angrily at the Jounin. Today was one of those days, where the Copy-nin was three hours late, per usual. When he finally arrived, Sakura yelled, pointing accusingly at him, while both Naruto and Sasuke glared heatedly at the Jounin.

"Yo," He said cheerily with a short wave, as usual, "We don't have any missions today, but I have some important news!" At the inquisitive gazes, (or lack there of) he pulled out three slips of paper, "I've entered you three to participate in the Chuunin Exams!" The three were silent, before Naruto jumped into the air, and yelled out cheerfully,

"YATTA!!" He ran foreword, and wrapped his arms around his sensei's neck, "Arigatou, Arigatou, Arigatou!" He cried, even going as far as to kiss the Jounins cheek.

"Maa, get down, Naruto-kun," he protested, and the blond quickly followed his instructions sheepishly, "anyway, if you wish to participate, you need to fill these out, and go to the stated meating place in seven days."

"Hai!!"

**xXxXx**

**Hey, sorry about this chapter. This is to get things moving, and I can't move on without this chapter being redicuasly slow. (Slower then it already is) It was mostly just to show how kiba took this information.**

**Sorry if people are OOC.**

**Ciao,**

**B.E.N.**


	6. Chapter 6

_**Final Lifeline**_

_**By B.E.N**_

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**Chapter Six:**

**IMPORTANT! IF YOU DID NOT READ THE UPDATED CHAPTER FIVE, PLEASE DO SO NOW.**

Naruto panted heavily, blood seeping from his knuckles, which were turning raw from the punches he had just inflicted upon the perfectly innocent log. He winced, and slowly flexed his fingers. He sighed before he straightened up and closed his eyes allowing his other senses to take over. He heard the creaking of the trees as the wind seemingly increased in power, listened as the birds tweeted gaily, felt the soil shift as he shuffled his feet under his shoes, and he smelt…ramen?

_You got distracted__. _Haku chastised, and Naruto saw his faint form in the back of his mind. The blond grumbled, before opening his cerulean eyes, and the form disappeared. The world around him returned to normal, and he let out a breath of air.

_Use your eyes Naruto._ The Hyoton user instructed. Naruto understood, and allowed his vision to fade out slightly. He was silent, before grinning slightly. He could see an electric blue coming towards him. He swiftly allowed his sub-conscious to analyze it, and he picked out the form of the person it surrounded, and power level of the person. He recognized it with no issues. He sighed, and refocused his eyes before relaxing, and taking a seat on top of the pole. "Why do you think I'm seeing these things, Haku?" he said aloud, not bothering to think it.

_Why ask me? Do you honestly think I know everything?_

"Yeah,"

_Well, you're partially right. I do have some theories. You see, I've been watching your blood ever since you used the Hyoton. It seems that somehow, my blood partials have mixed in with yours, and yours have adapted. Its like they evolved. It has partials of my Kekkei genkai basically latched onto you, and they seem to be multiplying rapidly._

"Huh…" Naruto murmured, not knowing what else to say. He looked up when he heard the soft foot falls of his visitor, and saw Kakashi walk towards him, a small scroll in hand accompanied b a bow of Ramen. Naruto grinned, and his sensei returned the gesture.

"Yo," the Jounin said cheerfully, "I got something for you, from the Hokage." Naruto felts his hopes swell, and he pushed off of the log. Kakashi tossed him the scroll skillfully, and in turn Naruto caught it. "I also thought that you would like some ramen."

"Arigato, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said politely, offering his teacher a slight bow. He accepted the ramen eagerly and sat down with the ramen in his lap while he opened the scroll. He observed it quickly, and grinned. "It's a storage scroll for the _Kubikiri Hōchō." _He smiled at his teacher again before setting the scroll in his kunai pouch., "Thanks."

"No problem, I'm just the delivery man," Kakashi countered, before taking a seat beside the blond as he quickly ate his ramen. "I wanted to tell you that you did really well on our last mission, Naruto-kun." He noticed how the jinchuriki's shoulders stiffened slightly before relaxing, and how his slurping had halted momentarily. Kakashi sighed. "Don't let this get to you, Naruto-kun. We are ninja, and we do as we are told. Even the greatest ninja are affected by their first kill, if you weren't, you wouldn't be quite human." Naruto chuckled a bit, before lowering his half eaten ramen. He stared into the bowl and watched the different ingredients swirl around slightly.

"I know that, Kakashi-sensei, but still…I'm a bit scared." This surprised the copy-nin. Since when did Naruto admit to being scared?

"Why is that?" he asked calmly, betraying his shock. Naruto paused before replying.

"When we were on the mission, I used the Hyoton. I'm not a Hyoton user, Kakashi-sensei, and it couldn't have been Haku who did that because there isn't any Hyoton blood in my system." He hesitated, "At least, that was what I thought. Haku said he's been observing my blood, and that over time his blood from when you did the transfer has been absorbed by my blood cells. The two fused together. Haku…Haku thinks that I may have a bloodline, and I'm scared. All bloodlines have faults, and what if mine has one that I don't even realize?" His voice went up an octave, "What if I'm dieing, and I don't even know it?!"

"Then we would miss you," Kakashi said easily, and Naruto glared at him. The Jounin chuckled, before turning serious and contemplating what he said. "Naruto-kun, I'd like you to come with me for a moment. I think I've heard of this before…and I think you might be right. You very well might have a kekkei genkai." And if you do, then I might know who your parents are, he added as an after thought in his head. Naruto nodded eagerly, before standing and following his Jounin sensei as he wound his way though Konoha and towards the Library. Naruto took everything around him in, a habit he got from Haku.

They walked down several isles of books before they came to a section dedicated to kekkei genkai's. Kakashi wasted no time as he looked for his goal, already having looked at it before. It took no more then a minute to find the small leather-bound book and pull it off the shelf. Kakashi nodded to himself before looking at the blond. "I found it. Follow me, we need to take a seat." Naruto did as instructed and ended up following his sensei to a rund table and took a seat beside the asked jounin, and he was able o glimpse the title.

'The Land of Whirlpool'

Naruto tilted his head to the side slightly, and watched as Kakashi flipped though the text to one of the last pages, and the top of it read in large print: 'Chishiogan'. Kakashi began to explain quietly so only Naruto could hear.

"Whirlpool was a small village that was destroyed before you were born. It was a peaceful village, and it contained only one bloodline limit: The Chishiogan." Kakashi paused, and his voice lowered even more, "When it was destroyed, the refugees spread out, and one family came here. This family was the main family of the village, and only one of them held the Chishiogan gene, even though it was inactive for her because of the fact that she was female. The Chishiogan is actually quite helpful, but it is dangerous to the user.

"Basically, if a Chishiogan carrier was fighting with someone who was a carrier of another bloodline, the Chishiogan user could obtain the his opponents bloodline if their blood was to mix. I think that since I had to cut your palm to transfer Haku's chakra, and it involved his blood, you obtained the Hyoton." Kakashi inhaled slightly, "I think your mother was of this clan." He was editing the story, but he wasn't the one to tell him and now wasn't the time. Kakashi continued then.

"The flaw is that if you over-use the Chishiogan in battle your chakra levels go down, and that the bloodlines aren't completely up to par with the originals. The Chishiogan basically alters your blood so that you are a carrier of several bloodlines. Unfortunately, the users who have collected over three bloodlines have all developed hemophilia, and they all died from blood loss." Kakashi looked at Naruto seriously, "you can't over do it, Naruto. You already have one bloodline collected –you must make a wise decision before you take a persons bloodline."

"…Arigatou, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said after a pause, "I….I appreciate this. Thank you."

"You are my student, Naruto, and I plan on taking care of you."

-

-

**I apologize for the length and the long pause. My life seems to have just gotten more and more hectic in the past few months.**

**Well, his bloodline is revealed. I hope you enjoyed this, and once again, I'm sorry for the wait. I appreciate all of you who were patient with this story.**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Final Lifeline**_

_**By B.E.N**_

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**Chapter Seven:**

_Hey, Naruto-kun?_

The blond started, almost slipping on the slippery floor of his shower, when he heard Haku's feminine voice. A blush bloomed across his features, before he cursed the voice out loud, "Haku! What've I told you about talking to me when I'm taking a shower? It's creepy!" he sighed, before relaxing, "What is it, Haku?"

_Well, I've been thinking…about what Kakashi-sensei said about your bloodline._

"Huh? What about it? Do you know something that Kakashi-sensei doesn't?" Naruto asked with excitement, thinking he might learn something new.

_No, it's actually quite the opposite. See, the way Kakashi worded his explanation seemed innocent enough at first…but when I began thinking about it a noticed something._

"Hm? What?" Naruto asked as he shut off the shower and wrapped himself in a fluffy white towel and heading towards his closet.

_Well, he said 'I think your mother might have been from this clan' or something along those lines. Well, he may have no clue who your mother is, but the way he said it shows that he might know who you're father is…_ the trapped soul paused, before rewording his statement. _No, I'm sure he knows who your father is._ Naruto didn't say anything for a second and allowed his mind to work it all out. Haku had a point…a really good point. He pulled on his shirt and decided then to hunt down Kakashi and force him to answer his questions. Haku intervened though.

_Wait for a second, Naruto-kun! _He cautioned quickly, _Today is the first test of the Chuunin exams. Kakashi probably already has enough on his shoulders, and he'll (hopefully) be worrying about his time. Also, you don't have enough time to hunt him down and ask. You're cutting it close as it is; you need to meet up with Sakura-san and Sasuke-kun._ Naruto grumbled deep in his throat, and lightly kicked his dresser before slouching out of the room with his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

-

Team seven flinched slightly as they saw the green spandex wearing kid get pushed aside unceremoniously by two thugs who currently guarded room 301. Naruto gently tilted his head to the side as he realized they were only on the second floor. He poked Sasuke in the side and murmured lowly 'genjutsu' under his breath. The Uchiha looked closer at the scene, before nodding in agreement.

"Should we stay, or go up to the next floor?" he asked giving a meaningful glance to the blond. Naruto tilted his head in the opposite direction and pondered this before sighing.

"Well, if we stay we could possibly loose time, but also manage to evaluate a few of the teams if they also try to get past," He tilted his head again, "On the other hand if we leave we could get called out and then they could possibly get mad at us, and the other teams will see us as a threat. That could give us some unnecessary attention."

"It would be best if we kept everything on the down low for a while so we have the element of surprise on our side," Sakura put in and Naruto got the feeling that she was trying to be helpful.

"Well, the only people in Konoha that know about our strengths are team eight, and the Hokage. That we know of," Naruto said, elaborating a bit. "So if one of us were to be placed against one of those guys then the element of surprise would be lost. Honestly, though we may have improved our fighting styles are still remotely the same. They'll have the upper hand,"

"…we weren't even talking about that," Sasuke said, feeling a vein in his forehead twitch slightly. Naruto grinned slightly and fought the urge to rub the back of his head.

"True, but they seemed to connect for me." The other two sighed, and Naruto attempted to redeem himself, "So, we stay?" His team mates nodded, and they turned their attention back to the front in time to hear the two genin guarding the door finish their little spiel.

"…We are just thinning out those who won't make it through anyway. What's wrong with that?" Sasuke decided to step up at this time, allowing his ego to take over in place of their plan and decided to speak up.

"I agree. But let my team and me through. And remove this genjutsu, while you're at it. We want to be on the third floor"

"Sasuke!" Naruto hissed under his breath, while Sakura fawned over the avenger silently. Naruto heard several people wondering what the Uchiha was talking about.

"Ah, so you noticed?" the one with shorter, more tamed hair said. Sasuke then decided to add on to his statement.

"Sakura, you noticed first, right?"

"Huh?" She blushed slightly at being approached by the Uchiha he offered her a light smirk that sent her heartbeat into a frenzy.

"Your analytical ability and genjutsu know-how is definitely the most improved in our teams." The Haruno allowed a light blush to appear on her face, before she nodded and gave a competitive smile.

"Of course I noticed a while ago, because this is the second floor." Naruto felt himself rage, and felt Haku's chakra surface slightly before he pushed it back down. A male with long dark brown hair with the pale eye of the Hyuuga glanced at his eyes with a brief look of confusion, before Naruto realized that his chakra must have spiked and that his eyes had changed to a murky brown for a second.

That all being said, the genjutsu faded and the one with wild hair spoke.

"Hm, not bad…but all you did was see through it!" He lunged foreword, span on his palm with his foot outstretched in preparation to kick them when Sasuke rose his leg in defense. Before the limbs could connect, a green blur placed him self in between them and held the calves of both genin's legs in his hands. As he dropped them, the male Hyuuga stepped foreword.

"What happened to the plan?" he demanded in a stoic tone, "you are the one who said we shouldn't draw attention to ourselves." The green clad ninja blushed, and turned his gaze towards Sakura and Naruto could have sworn he saw fire ignite behind the genin's eyes. The burnet female of the team groaned and shook her head from side to side.

"Oh, no." she protested to herself. The genin the walked towards the pink haired ninja, and began is introduction.

"My name is Rock Lee. So, your name is Sakura…" he smiled, a flick of light reflecting off of his brilliantly white teeth, and winked. "Let's go out together! I will protect you till I die!" Naruto grimaced. He wasn't much of a looker, but he seemed honest when he said that. The blond had no doubt in his mind that he could protect her, and would.

"No way. You're lame." Naruto felt his faith in the young girl diminish slightly. She could have said it more politely; that was a bit harsh. He watched with remorse as Rock Lee's flicker of flame diminish slightly and felt sudden apathy for the nin. So, he gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, you aren't the first she's turned down." He comforted, when the Hyuuga spoke up again to Sasuke.

"Hey, you. What's your name?"_ 'Dammit! Not Sasuke again!'_

"When you want to learn someone's name, you should give yours first." Sasuke cockily answered, and Naruto wanted to smack himself in the head. Sure, provoke the elder, probably stronger ninja!

"You're a rookie, right? How old are you?" the Hyuuga asked, ignoring the jab. Sasuke just replied;

"I don't have to answer to you." the two turned and walked away from each other. Sakura seemed to get the idea, and gabbed her partners hands.

"Naruto, Sasuke, lets go!" She drug them off with Sasuke quietly grumbling to her about not grabbing his hand. As they walked out, they were confronted by Lee, who stood up on the loft. He was the first to speak.

"You, with the dark eyes," he called, pointing slightly at Sasuke. The Uchiha turned, and eyed the nin lazily.

"What is it?"

"Will you fight me? Right now?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow, while Naruto and Sakura watched intently.

"A fight? Right now?" He asked. Rock Lee nodded.

"Yes," He answered verbally, before hurtling over the rail and landing in front of the trio, "My name is Rock Lee," He hesitated for a moment, "When you wish to learn someone's name, you give them yours first, right?" Sasuke seemed amused, "Uchiha Sasuke?"

"So you know, huh?" he asked, confidence clear in his voice.

"Yes. I wish to test my techniques against the offspring of the genius ninja clan," he looked completely serious until a light blushed fanned across his tan cheeks, "That, and…" he trailed off, before giving Sakura a wink. She practically screamed in repulse.

"Those lower eyelashes! Ew!" Lee then blew her a kiss, and she fell backwards, hitting her head on the floor.

"You are an angel!" He declared, and she flinched violently.

"Those eyebrows, that lame hair…" she murmured, and she looked completely distraught. Naruto winced in sympathy for Lee. Lee winced slightly.

"You don't have to be mean," he said slightly before Sasuke spoke again.

"You challenge me knowing the Uchiha name?" he asked, "Frankly, you are a fool. Let me show you," his gaze hardened, "What the name bears." Naruto felt fury coil up inside of him, and he recognized Haku's disgust as well. Sasuke was using his name as a shield, and he expected that the clan was what made you strong. The genin shook his head slightly, and refocused himself.

"Please," Lee said, encouraging the fight, "Gai-sensei, let me prove myself…" his gaze turned fierce, and his raw determination made Naruto appreciate him even more. He saw how his Aura flared up and was a brilliant green, and represented his raw power. "I'll say this now, you cannot defeat me because currently, I am the strongest Konoha Genin." Sasuke smirked, and Naruto noticed how Sasuke still thought him weak. How could he after sending of such an aura of raw power?!

_Those two can't see aura's, Naruto-kun._ Haku reminded him. Naruto only gave the briefest of nods in acknowledgement, and watched closely.

"Sound's like fun," Sasuke said aloofly, stepping foreword. Naruto took the chance to intervene.

"We don't have time, I'm afraid," he said, moving the attention to him self, "We need to prepare for the first test, and we might not know what that is. If you two are both physically drained, then you will find it difficult to participate to your full potential. Besides, you have plenty of time to fight after the exams."

"I won't be drained, Naruto," Sasuke said coldly in complete disregard to the blonds subtle warning, "This will take no more then five minutes."

"Dammit, Sasuke!" Naruto yelled, breaking his composure, "You can't see his aura, I can! He. Is. Stronger. Get that into your head. It is possible that he doesn't have a large arsenal of jutsu, but he has raw strength that exceeds all three of us! Don't underestimate him! When he stopped your kick, he was using raw strength, my eyes could tell that much. You've completely ignored the right decision about fifty time! We. Are. A. team. We work together. When will you get it into your head that a team doesn't revolve around a single figure!

"Being a team means that we work together towards a greater goal," Naruto concluded, "If you fight him in the state you are now, then you will loose, and we all will suffer."

"I see that Kakashi has taught his pupils well!" A deep, masculine voice called out. The four turned to see a much larger version of Lee standing on top of a turtle. To their horror, his eyebrows were even thicker, and his spandex even tighter. As they voiced their thoughts, Lee looked appalled.

"Do not insult Gai-sensei!" He cried, fist in front of his body. The larger Lee, now introduced as 'Gai' looked dead at the three nin.

"How is Kakashi doing?" he asked good mannerly. The three blinked.

"How do you know Kakashi-sensei?" Sasuke asked carefully, and suddenly the green man disappeared, only to reappear behind them.

"Well, they call us eternal rivals!" He announced, stroking his chin with his thumb, "fifty wins, forty-nine losses! I'm stronger then Kakashi." The three gawked.

'No way!' They all thought.

"See?! Gai-sensei is incredible!" Lee exclaimed.

"I apologize for Lee," Gai spoke, "It won't happen again; I promise on this face!" He grinned, "You all should head to the classroom now, for fear of being late." That being said, he disappeared in a poof of smoke with a brief farewell to Lee. It was when he was gone that Lee turned, and looked at Sasuke with determination in his eyes.

"Sasuke, when I spoke earlier, I lied about one thing. The strongest genin isn't me. It is my partner on my own team and I entered to defeat him," his gaze turned to switch between the blond and the avenger, "You two, I want to fight you as well." He gave them a nice smile, and a thumbs up, "I hope to see you in the exams." And that being said as a farewell, he leapt over the loft once again. The three watched closely, before Sasuke was the one to speak, glaring angrily at Naruto.

"Don't tell me what I can or cannot do, dobe," He said, "I don't care if you had one of the bijuu sealed inside of you, I would still be stronger then you or that Lee kid."

"We are a team, Sasuke," Naruto said again, "We need to start acting like one." The Uchiha glared, and Sakura spoke up.

"Leave him alone, Naruto. You know that he was strong enough to defeat Lee." She chastised, and Naruto turned a contemplative gaze towards her. He was silent before he spoke again.

"You know, Sakura, I'm not to sure why I had a crush on you in the first place," He said coolly, "You are the same as Sasuke-teme. You don't think of the team, you think of the individuals. You would think that the last mission told you that we can't do this on our own. Get your head in the game." He looked towards the stairs, "Some on, we have about twenty five minutes left before we're late."

He began walking without them, and the two were stunned. Sasuke was the first to recover and followed after him, while Sakura lagged farther behind. When they were greeted by Kakashi, their sensei immediately noticed the tension.

"Well, good luck?" Kakashi said, finishing his spiel on the exams and allowing the three too enter the room. He was silent as they disappeared when he turned to see Gai standing behind him.

"Do you know where they were before they came here?" He asked his rival, and the green man nodded.

"They were in an argument about teamwork," Gai grinned, "I like your blond one, Naruto, was that his name? He seemed to have a better understanding of it then the other two." Kakashi sighed, and nodded.

"I'm starting to think that myself," he looked once again at his rival, "Do you know if they had any security cameras in the room they were in? I want to see what happened first hand." Gai offered a brilliant smile.

"Of course, my eternal rival! I shall retrieve this tape for you, and then, whoever can make it around Konoha in the quickest time wins!" he poofed away before Kakashi could reply. The silver haired Jounin sighed before opening his book.

'This is going to be the longest Chuunin Exams yet…'

-

-

**I updated again!**

**Sorry for any mistakes and if it was rushed, if I get to many complaints I'll fix it up later.**

**I'd like to thank Doctor Yami for some pointers, as well!**

**Ciao!**

**B.E.N.**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Final Lifeline**_

_**By B.E.N**_

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**Chapter Eight:**

"W…wow," Naruto murmured as he took in the room before him. He pushed aside his anger in exchange to see all that was going on in the room. Of course, Sasuke showed no reaction, while Sakura quietly asked, "What's this?"

As soon as they had entered the large room, everyone had turned and began to stare them down. The ages varied from thirteen years old, to possibly fifty! There were so many people in the room that it surprised them all. Were they all here to take the exam? They all seemed very demoralizing. The room was quiet, before a squeal broke through.

"Sasuke-kun!!! You're late!" Ino was suddenly attached to the Uchiha's back and pressing herself tightly against him. "I haven't seen you in a while. I've been waiting in excitement."

"Get away from Sasuke-kun Ino-pig!" Sakura yelled, while Naruto tried to back away from them. Didn't they sense all those glares sent their way!? He nervously smiled in apology to the others and backed away to observe the wall.

"Why if it isn't Sakura. Big ugly forehead as always."

"What did you say!?" Sakura yelled angrily at Ino, when Shikamaru and Chouji approached them from where Ino had appeared.

"You guys are taking this stupid test to? Don't die," Shikamaru cautioned and greeted simultaneously, "Man, this sucks." Chouji just kept eating from his bag of ships while Ino stuck her tongue out at Sakura.

"Yahoo! I found you guys!" Naruto wanted to kill himself. SURE, GO AHEAD AND DRAW ALL ATTENTION OVER HERE!!!!

"H-Hello," Hinata murmured from behind Kiba, while Shino remained silent.

"Looks like everyone's assembled," Kiba continued with a wolfish grin on his face.

"Geez, you guys too?" Shikamaru asked, his posture slouched and his hands shoved into his pockets.

"I see, all nine of this years rookie genin are taking the exam this year." Kiba said, eyes scanning through everyone and stopping on Naruto, who was still facing the now very interesting wall, "Hey, Naruto!" The blond felt a vein twitch in his forehead before he turned and smiled tightly at the Inuzuka, though he did relaxed a bit, now that the two quietest people he knew were there, also slightly perturbed by the genin's rowdiness. Kiba then continued his previous statement, "I wonder how far we will get, eh, Sasuke?"

"Pft. You seem confidant, Kiba," the Uchiha returned cockily.

"We did a lot of training since our last encounter, "Kiba said with equal cockiness in his tone, "We won't loose to you guys." He turned and looked at Naruto again; "I expect to have difficulty fighting you now, Naruto."

"Heh, yeah," Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head, "Same to you."

"Hey, you guys should be more quiet," a new voice said. They turned to see a silver headed leaf genin with round glasses walking towards them, "you guys are rookies just out of the academy, right? Jeez…screaming like schoolgirls. This isn't a picnic."

"Who do you think you are?" Ino asked, looking annoyed and propping a hand against her hip.

"I'm Kabuto." He answered, "but instead of that, look behind you." They did as instructed, even though Naruto had already seen (and felt) the stares. Though, glares would be a much better word. Three nins, from the hidden rain, stared at them with anger clear in their features.

"Those guys behind you are from the hidden rain, they have short tempers. Everyone is nervous about the exam. Quiet down before you make a scene." Too late, Naruto thought tersely, and felt his mouth twitch downward slightly.

"Well, I can't blame you, you're clueless rookies. You remind me of how I used to be."

"Kabuto-san, right?" Sakura asked, slightly annoyed.

"Yah."

"So is this your second time?" She asked curiously, cocking an eyebrow.

"Nope. Seventh. The exam is held twice a year, so this is my fourth year." He explained, only hesitating when he told them how many times he had failed.

"Wow, so you know a lot about this exam?" she asked again, honestly curious this time. Naruto knew she was going to try and get some information on the exams by how she straightened slightly.

"That's right," was the answer he gave.

"Wow, impressive," Naruto murmured. He meant it in a bad way. Impressive would be if you passed the first time you took the exam. No one caught that he really thought that.

"Hehe." Kabuto chuckled before grinning, "Then I'll share some info with you cute rookies with my ninja info cards." As he said this, he pulled out a deck of orange cards from his pocket.

"Nin-info cards?" Sakura asked, head tilted slightly.

"They are cards with information burned on to them with chakra. I have four years of information here. Over 200 cards," He seemed proud of his collection, though Naruto felt his aura flare suspiciously. Over all, he was a charismatic guy and fairly easy to relax around, but maybe…He quickly shook it off and shoved the thought to the back of his head. He'd think on it later.

"They look blank, but to open them they must be infused with my chakra," That being said, he turned a card over and placed his fingertips on them The card then colored with an easily-read graph.

"Wow, an easily read graph," Sakura praised. Bu now the rookies had all gathered around him to look at the cards with interest. "What kind of info is this?"

"It's the number of all the people taking the exam this year and the breakdown of what country they're from." Sasuke spoke up immediately.

"Do you have info on individual nins?"

"Hehe, there some guys you worried about?" Kabuto asked, fixing his glasses, "Of course. The information on all the exams participants isn't perfect, but I do have it. Even of you guys." Okay, stalker much? Naruto thought and he heard Haku chuckle in his head. "Say something bout these guys and I'll take a look."

"Gaara of the Sand, and Rock Lee from leaf."

"Oh, you know their names. Should be easy then," Kabuto said before shuffling though the cards almost too quick to see and pulling out two separate cards.

"Let me see." Sasuke demanded. Whatever happened ((to Fay ray?)) to being polite? Naruto wondered, ah well, I guess chivalry really is dead.

_You are being unusually humorous today, _Haku said laughing again. Naruto only mentally flashed him a thumbs up before paying attention again.

"Ok, first is on Rock Lee. He's a year older then you guys. Mission history: 20 completed D rank and 12 completed C rank. His sensei is Gai. His Taijutsu has improved greatly in the past year, but the rest is nothing impressive. Last year he gained attention as a talented new genin but did not participate in the exam. Like you guys, this is his first time. On his team are Hyuuga Neji and TenTen."

"Ok, next is Gaara of the desert. Mission History: 8 c-rank and 1 b-rank. Wow, a b-rank mission as a genin…" Kabuto quickly regained concentration, "since he's a new comer from a foreign country, I don't have much information but it seems as if he's returned from all of his missions without even a scratch." When this tidbit of information was revealed, the genin got real silent for a moment. Kabuto took that silence to continue on his information.

"Leaf, Sand, Rain, Grass, Waterfall, Sound…many outstanding genin's from various hidden villages here to take the exam. Well…the hidden Sound village is a small village created last year, so there isn't much information on them but the rest of the villages are filled with talented youngsters." Wow…he sounded really old just then, Naruto mused. With a few more stray thoughts going through his head Haku was soon having trouble concentrating and was laughing loudly in the back of Naruto's head.

"M-makes you loose your confidence," Hinata chimed in quietly, poking her index fingers together.

"So basically, all the people here are…" Sakura began.

"Yup! Like Lee and Gaara, they are the top elite genin's from various countries." Kabuto said, smiling happily. "This isn't going to be easy." Naruto felt his competitive and courageous side kick in. How long had he been keeping cool? It had been a while…he wanted to act out, to be an idiot.

_Naruto…_ Haku cautioned but the blond blocked him. He began to shake slightly, and he then felt Sakura's hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Naruto, don't get so down…"

"MY NAME IS UZUMAKI NARUTO!" he shouted, "AND I WON'T LOOSE TO ANY OF YOU BASTARDS!!!" He grinned largely, pointing at the large group ahead of him. They all seemed either amused, or annoyed at his declaration. "YOU GOT THAT!?" (Outside the door, Kakashi heard the declaration and felt a bead of sweat drip down his face, and as the drop hit the ground, so did his doubts.)

"Hey?! What is he?" Ino couldn't even finish the sentence, she was so shocked. Sakura looked like she had died a little inside.

"Ah, that felt good," Naruto said happily, stretching. Sasuke let out a 'heh' of amusement, while Kabuto watched with interest. The rest of the rooms' occupants didn't seem as amused.

"Hey, it's that guy from before…" Kankuro mused to himself.

"He is very spirited Lee." Neji said, balancing his arm on his leg, "I guess you didn't beat him down enough."

"The hidden sound village is a minor village?" a spiky haired sound nin mused, "Is that so?"

"Let's play with them a little bit," the female added. The third chuckled, looking like a mummy.

"Heh Heh, good idea. Calling us leftovers…Let's help him add to his data…that hidden sound shinobi's…Can be quite vicious."

"Uzumaki?" a childish voice, sounding unused, asked. Her two partners nodded, before exchanging meaningful glances. The quite one smiled brightly, but no word escaped her as she made signs. Her other teammate nodded, her silver hair reflecting the light.

"Yes, this is very good luck," she responded. The light reflected off of their headbands, revealing the music note carved into it. The quiet one reached into her shirt and pulled out a necklace and stared at it intensely before tucking it back in. Her eyes remained hidden by her locks of midnight hair.

A breeze moved aside her bangs, and revealed pale, pupil-less eyes.

-

"BEGIN!"

Naruto instantly began to panic. He wasn't good a writing exams!!! He was going to end up failing his team! He let his head drop to the table, before picking it up again and looking at the paper. Okay, maybe I know some of this, he thought. He looked at the paper for a minute, before he felt his hopes drain. He knew what he would have to do.

_Naruto-kun let me help._ Haku murmured, _I know some of these questions…but others you will have to cheat to get. _

No! Using you doesn't help me at all, Naruto protested, I can't!

_Then let me take control so I can use the ice mirrors to help you. You're already training with it, but you haven't mastered it. If you let me take control for a brief moment, I can form one discretely with one-handed seals (to make it les noticeable) and then infuse enough chakra into it that it won't disappear or melt. I'll then give you control and you can discreetly use that to cheat. _Naruto hesitated. He was trying to learn that jutsu…so technically it would be fine. And Haku was planning on teaching him one-handed seals…He mentally nodded, and muttered an all right.

He allowed his mind to freeze, and is eyes to flicker closed. He focused only on his mind, and how he wanted to let go. He soon felt Haku begin to slip in. It felt like spiders creeping along his skin, and in his mind it looked like white shadows were creeping along and slowly incasing his mind. He felt he eyes open, and he felt his awareness fade.

Haku opened Naruto's-no, his now- eyes and allowed then a small portion of time to adjust. He discreetly popped his joints. It felt so good to have a body, to _move! _He quickly refocused, and discreetly placed his hand in his lap and formed the needed seals. _Makyō Hyōshō! _

A small, destreet mirror of Ice appeared on the cealing, and reflected the tests seated around him. He glanced up, and managed to keep his features strait as he quickly scrawled onto the test the blonds time limit. He then relaxed, and attempted to let Naruto back in. He waited, and opened his eyes when he couldn't sense the blonds mind. He searched all through his head, but there was almost no trace of him. Haku felt fear invelope him. Had…had he accidently erased Naruto? His eyes snapped open and he began to silently panic.

What was he going to do!? He breathed in deeply, before composing himself once more. He couldn't handle this now, he needed to complete the test for Naruto. He shakily picked up his pencil and frowned. This body…it wasn't used to keeping his calm façade that he always used...this would be difficult. He sighed again, and began to scribble down the answers furiously, glancing up at the cealing cautiously. He paid attention to nothing but the sheet before him, even ignoring the people as they were caught cheating one by one.

He had five minutes until the tenth question was revealed when he finished the test. He pushed it away slightly before allowing the ice mirror to slowly and discreetely dissapere. He then pressed the finger tips of his index and middle finger against his temples, closed his eyes, and allowed his mind to momentarily go dormat. While searching through the recesses of his mind, where there was no disctinct measure of time.

"Ok, we will now start the tenth question."

Haku started, before glancing up at Ibiki. He was annoyed he didn't have more time- he hadn't found him yet! He wanted to jummp up, yell at him about how he interrupted something very serious, and sit down to continue the search. He sighed, before pulling his test back and keeping watchful brown eyes on the examiner.

"Now, before we get to it…I would like to go over the added rules for this question." Haku started, but not physically. Added rules? What? They never mentioned this…

Just as Ibiki was about to explain, a beneficiary came in with the sand nin Kankuro behind him. The jounin smirked. "Heh, excellent timing. Was your doll playing beneficial?" Haku smirked slightly. He was spot on about the puppets. "Just sit down."

"Now, I will explain. These are the rules of desperation," Ibiki seemed highly amused about something, causing Haku not to trust what he said completely. "first, for the tenth question you must decide if you want to take it or not."

"Choose?!" Temari burst, "What happened if we choose not to take it!?" Ibiki smirked.

"If you choose not to, your points will be reduced to zero. You fail! Along with your two team mates."

"What dose that mean!?"

"Then of course we will take the tenth question!"

Haku sighed, annoyed by all the outburst. Save your questions till the end was generally a pretty good rule to follow. To his amusement, Ibiki continued as before.

"And now…the other rule. If you choose to take it, and answer incorrectly…" he paused dramatically, "that person will never be able to take the exams again."

'WHAT!?' Haku mentally shouted, blinking in surprise, 'What was the point of the first ten questions!?'

"What kind of stupid rule is that!?" Kiba shouted, Akamaru yipping in agreement, "There are guys here who have taken the exam before!!!" Ibiki began to chuckle maliciously, before answering his question.

"You guys were unlucky. This year, it's my rules." He regained composure, "But I'm giving you a way out. Those who feel they aren't confident can choose not to take it and return to take the test again next year." There was silence, and Ibiki continued. "Now, lets begin. Those who do not wish to take the tenth question, raise your hand. Once your number is confirmed, you may leave." Haku closed his eyes and analyzed the situation carefully, ignoring the people who slowly began to leave. What was the point…? His eyes tightened before they snapped open in realization. That's…!

He hesitated, and looked over his back to see Sakura begin to raise her hand. "No!" Haku hissed under his breath, catching Hinata's attention. Why would she quit…? Haku's mind worked overdrive, trying to find a way to stop her. Before he could check for any flaws, he went with his gut feeling. He slammed his hand down onto the table, before standing up.

"Don't underestimate me!" He yelled, trying his best to sound like the hyper ninja that was now so controlled, "I will not run! I'll take it! I don't care if I'm a genin forever I'll become Hokage anyway, so I don't care!!" Haku prayed that he got the blonds nindo correct. "I am not afraid!" Haku honestly felt like an idiot. What was he doing?? He saw Hinata stare at him, and focus on his eyes. Ibiki spoke again.

"Hey, didn't you have blue eyes before?" he questioned, voice suspicious. Haku froze. No, did they really change…?

"His eye's change color with his emotions!" Sakura defended from behind him. Haku sighed, but knew it wouldn't work. Thankfully, though, Ibiki believed her.

"I'll ask you again. Your life is riding on this decision," Haku appreciated how he didn't question the color of his eyes again, "This is your last chance to quit." Haku settled with glaring at nothing, and keeping completely still. No one else got up or left the room. Ibiki waited, before continuing. "Good decisions. Now, to everyone still remaining…I congratulate you on passing the first test!" Haku grinned and slumped in his chair, glad that his hunch had been correct. He felt a soft poke on his shoulder, and turned to see Hinata staring at him.

"Anou…are you the one…who took over when we were on the mission? With the mercenaries?" Hinata asked carefully, watching with innocent eyes. Haku hesitantly nodded.

"Hai, that was me. My name is Haku. I…I was helping Naruto on the exam, but I can't find him again," he responded, knowing that Hinata deserved to know what had happened to her crush.

"Y-you mean…Naruto-kun is…gone?" Her eyes widened and turned glassy. Haku almost paniced.

"No! Naruto is there somewhere, I'm just not sure where. I have to try and find him again." Haku promised, not willing to give up or show that he had any doubt. Hinata timidly placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Please, Haku-san…don't let Naruto-kun disappear…I need him here," she whispered, and Haku gave her a soft smile and gently patted her hand.

"I swear it." They turned their attention back to Ibiki, just in time to see him remove his headgear.

"…because sometimes, information is more important then life. And on missions and the battle field, people do anything to get their hands on it." His head was horribly burned, with screw holes that showed signs of torture. Haku felt his respect for the man grown a hundred times. "If the enemy or third party notices you…" he replaced his headgear now as he spoke, "There is no guarantee that the information will be accurate. I want you to remember this. Important information in your hands can be a powerful weapon for your comrades and for the village.

"So, we had you gather information through cheating. This clearly separated those who did not have the right abilities." He concluded.

"But…I don't understand the final question, "Temari said, eyebrows furrowed. Ibiki smiled.

"But…question ten is the true purpse of this test."

"What do you mean?" Sakura pounced, head cocked to the side.

"Let me explain. The tenth question, the 'take it' or 'not take it' decision. Obviously, these were painful choices. Those who chose the latter fail along with their team mates. Those who choose to take it could loose the chance to take the exam ever again. A true leap of faith." Ibiki placed his hand in front of him, pointing upwards, "How about these two choices. Say you all become chuunin. Your mission is to steal a secret document. The amount of ninjas, their abilities, are unknown to you. And of course, there will be traps set up al around you. Now, do you accept, or not accept? Because you don't want to die, because you don't want your comrades hurt, can you avoid the dangerous mission?" A hesitation of silence filled the room.

"The answer is no." Ibiki said, "No matter what the danger, there are missions you ca'nt ability to be courageous and survive any hardships Is the ability needed to become a chuunin captain. Those that can't put their destinies on the line, who clings to the uncertain future of 'there's always next year' and then walk away from their chance…those pieces of trash who can only make cowardly choices don't have the right to become a chuunin. That's how I feel.

"Those who choose to take it and answered the tough tenth question correctly. You will be able to survive any troubles you face in your future. You have made it through the entrance, the first test of the chuunin selection exam is now complete." He smiled kindly, "I wish you guys luck." Haku grinned widely, unable to resist the urge, when a black ball shot through the window. Two kunais shot out and stuck to the roof, blocking Ibiki from view and unraveled to reveal a scantily clad woman standing in front of the printed on sheet.

"You guys! This is no time to be celebrating!" the woman chastised, her purple hair in a wild, untamed pony tail. "I am the examiner for the second test, Mitarashi Anko! Now lets go!! FOLLOW ME!!!"

Haku felt his jaw drop, and knew he wasn't the only one. What in the world…? Ibiki stepped from behind the tarp, and muttered, 'Bad timing.'

"The examiner…is Naruto-ish," Haku heard Sakura mumble.

"Eight One!?" Anko shouted, "Ibiki, you left twenty seven teams!? This test was way to easy this time!"

"This time, there are a lot of outstanding ones." He countered.

"Bah. That's fine. By the time I'm through with them They'll at least be cut in half." She grinned, "Ah, I'm getting excited, I'll explain everything once we've changed places. Follow me."

-

-

**AND I BRING YOU ALL THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!!**

**So, this took a while because for a lot of scenes I wanted them to be as accurate as possible so I actually looked at the manga, and kept switching back and forth between the two.**

**DO NOT WORRY ABOUT NARUTO!!! HE WILL RETURN (HOPEFULLY) IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!!**

**So, up next is the forest of death!!!**

**Love and kisses;**

**B.E.N **

**UPDATE: After a few reveiws I realized (to my horror) that in the middle of this chapter, my spell check had stopped doing its job and left me completely unaware when my fingers would slip and hit multipul buttons, or the wrong one. (That happens often) So, I apologize prefusely. So, I got the spell check working and I edited it where I saw fit to edit it.**

**Once again, I apologize.  
**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Final Lifeline**_

_**By B.E.N**_

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**Chapter Nine:**

"This is creepy," Sakura murmured as she gazed upon the high wire fences which encased large, ominous trees that were way to big to be natural. Haku felt a chill go up his spine after sensing something dark creep around. He didn't like it; something didn't fit in here. Sasuke turned to the soul then, eyes narrowed.

"What the hell happened to Naruto?" he asked. Haku remained impassive.

"During the test, I came forth to help him form a mirror. When I tried to return control to him, I could not find him. I've been trying to search for him since I finished the exam." He explained coolly, "I apologize if this is of any inconvenience to you, Sasuke-san." Haku had to admit he was being rude, but after that comment in the previous room, he didn't feel like being polite to him. Sasuke just huffed, before turning towards the insane woman ahead of them.

"H-Haku-kun, can you find Naruto again?" Sakura asked, worried, "He's our team mate, and we…we don't want anything bad to happen to him."

"I'm trying." The soul was getting annoyed with all the pestering. He swore, the next person that came up to him asking how Naruto was would end up impaled by a spike of ice. He quickly took deep breaths, and returned his attention to the front in time to catch Anko's opening phrase.

"You will all soon find out why it's called 'The Forest of Death'," she said, amused by something. Her eyes scanned the crowd, before she started again, jumping down from her perch, "Now, I have a few things I want to pass out before we start." She pulled out a group of papers (from where, Haku had no idea), "You must sign these agreement forms." Ah, a waver. "There will be death in this one, and if I don't have you sign them it will be all my responsibility. Heh.

"I'm going to explain the second test, and then you can sign it afterwords. Then, each team will check into the booth behind me." She waved her hand back, towards the wooden stand (reminding Haku vaguely of a lemonade stand) which was covered by a black curtain. "I'll now explain the second test. Simply put, you are attempting the ultimate survival. First I will explain the area in which we will take the test. Around practice area no. 44 are 44 locked gates. There is a forest, rivers, and a tower in the center. From the gates to the center is about ten kilometers away.

"During your time in here you will be asked to complete a certain task. Using your many weapons and jutsu you will compete," She pulled out a scroll from her sleeve (maybe) and held it in front of her face, "In a no rules, scroll battle."

"Scroll?" some one asked.

"Yes," Anko replied, "You will fight over these two scrolls: Heaven, and Earth." She now held two scrolls and displayed them to the group, "There are eighty one people here, meaning twenty seven teams. Thirteen will receive a Heaven scroll, and fourteen an earth scroll. This makes it so there is no way all of you will return…alive, at least. To pass this test, your team must make it to the tower with both scrolls." She seemed to enjoy holding the scrolls in one hand out in front of her, because this was about the fifth time she had done so.

"So, circa thirteen people will loose their scrolls, meaning half of us will definitely fail." Sakura concluded, face completely serious.

"But there is a time limit. This second test will last exactly 120 hours, five days." Anko continued.

"Five days!?" Ino shouted.

"What about dinner!?!" Chouji cried in horror.

"You're all on your own." Anko said with nonchalance, "The forest is full of food. Just look out for man eating beasts, poisonous plants, poisonous insects, and so you know," she grinned sadistically, "It's not likely thirteen teams will make it through. As the days go on, the distance to the tower will become farther, and time to rest will become shorter. And with enemies crawling everywhere, you won't get much sleep. So not only will some not get both of their scrolls, but some will die from the harshness of this course."

"Now I'll talk about what will disqualify you," Her disposition suddenly changed and she was smiling happily and putting up a finger when she'd count off a reason. "First, those that don't make it to the tower within the time limit. Second, those who loose a teammate or get a teammate killed. As a rule, there is no quitting in the middle. You will be in there for five days. And one more rule: You may not look in the scroll until you make it to the tower."

"What happens if you do?" Haku asked. Anko smiled, and winked.

"That's a surprise for those who choose to ignore me." She said, "A chuunin will be trusted to handle classified information. This will test your trustworthiness. Well, that's it for explanations. Exchange the three forms for your scrolls, and then go wait at your gate." She ended abruptly, leaving a few people dazed. "Oh, and a final word of advice!" Honestly, Haku wondered how helpful that would be. "Don't die." Huh, what do you know? A man then stepped from one of the huts.

"It's about time to exchange for scrolls," He said, before going back behind the curtain. The teams began to move around, some already done filling out the forms. Haku sighed, and lazily filled out the form, managing to do a decent job of forging Naruto's signature. They swiftly turned in their waver, received their scroll, and headed to gate twelve.

"Everyone follow an instructor, and go to your gates!" Anko instructed loudly, "We're starting in thirty minutes!" When team seven arrived at their gate their guard unlocked it swiftly, allowing the chain to fall to the floor with a muffled 'clank'. He then just stood beside the gate, waiting.

"H-Naruto-kun," Sakura said, careful to use the blonds name, "Do you think we'll do ok?" Haku paused, before replying as honestly as possible.

"It all depends on who we run into, and what scroll they need. If we run into Gai's team or the sand team with that Gaara kid, we will most likely fail. But if we run into one of the rookies, we can obtain their scroll and win. It'd be best if we run after team ten, because Ino is infatuated with Sasuke and will give us a head start. They would also find me as the weakest link, even though right now I'm fairly strong,"_ Though with this body_, he thought,_ I'm not sure how strong I am._

Sakura seemed to deflate a little, and looked at the ground with her hands folded in front of her. Sasuke huffed.

"Glad to see you have so much faith in us, _Naruto._" He sneered. Haku glowered.

"I can't believe you, Uchiha. You are the one who always tells us we're _'holding you back'_." Haku snorted, before turning and facing the gate, tuning out his team.

"The second test of the chuunin exams," Anko yelled, "Begins now!" as soon as she finished, the gates opened, and each team ran swiftly inside the chain-linked fences.

Haku was silent as he was at the head of the group, and every time Sasuke would try to go ahead, he would speed up and regain control. Sasuke finally scowled and stayed at his spot, when a scream erupted through the woods. Haku sighed lightly, and concentrated.

"Looks like it's begun," he said solemnly. They stopped running.

"That…That was a human scream, wasn't it?" Sakura asked, shaking slightly, "I'm getting kind of nervous, guys."

"This is nothing, Sakura," Haku said in what he hoped to be a comforting manner, "Look, I need to use the restroom, and I'll be right back. Don't do anything stupid." He turned and walked into the bushes. When he reemerged, his disposition suddenly changed.

"Man! So much came out! I feel much better!" he exclaimed, blue eyes sparkling in the light. Wait, Sasuke thought, blue?

"Haku!" Sakura cried, appalled, "What's wrong with you?" Sasuke moved quickly, almost to quick to see, and punched the Uzumaki in the face. Sakura blanched slightly, surprised. "Er, Sasuke-kun, you didn't have to go that far…" She winced as the blond crashed into the bark of a tree, whipping blood off of his face.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked, glaring at the Uchiha.

"Where's the real Naruto?" Sasuke demanded. The Uzumaki glared.

"What…are you saying all of the sudden?"

"Your shuriken holster is on your left side, he's right handed. And the main difference is your eyes: they're blue. Naruto's were brown when he left to go to the bathroom. You also got his personality weird. He wasn't In a vulgar…state of mind today. You're just a fake looser that's worse then Naruto at transforming," Sasuke finished his rant with a dark glare. Then, the fake Naruto poofed away and was replaced with a rain nin with long, greasy looking black hair and an odd breathing mask on his mouth.

"Unlucky!" he called, "You figured it out, oh well. Now which one of you has the scroll?" Sakura and Sasuke jumped back, and the rain nin continued, "I'll just take it by force, then!!" He dashed foreword towards the two, and while Sakura remained on the ground in a defensive position Sasuke leapt into the air and formed a quick succession of hand seals.

"_Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!_" (Mythical Fire Flower Technique) He called, breathing deep and then releasing a string of fireballs toward the rain nin. The rain shinobi then jumped on the ground, avoiding all the fireballs, and bounded towards Sasuke with a kunai, which Sasuke blocked with his own. Sasuke landed with his palm flat against a tree branch, while the rain shinobi bounded off in the opposite direction.

"Moron," Sasuke murmured as he spotted Haku sawing through the ropes that bound him with an ice spear. He tossed his kunai and cut the ropes, and the rain nin attempted another attack, tossing the kunai towards Sasuke.

"Yes! There is an opening! Lucky!" the rain shinobi cried. Sasuke quickly flipped around the branch so he held on with a chakra laced hand.

"Damn," he murmured. He started, though, when he heard the fizzling of an explosive note. He let go of the branch, and the explosion propelled him towards the ground. He landed on all fours, only to feel the cold metal of the kunai pressed against his neck.

"Now this is lucky!" the rain nin exclaimed in a nasally voice, "Move and I kill you! Now hand over the scroll!"

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried, hurrying over to the two, only for a kunai to hurtle from above and towards the rain nin. The nin quickly jumped up and away from Sasuke causing the blade to stick into the ground behind Sasuke. Haku emerged from the canopy, his gaze murderous.

"You will not get away!" He said strongly. Sasuke acted quickly and focused chakra into his foot to grasp the kunai and then quickly kick it towards the nin. Sasuke swiftly jumped up to follow the projectiles path, and as the rain nin cried out as he avoided the weapon Sasuke promptly stabbing him in the shoulder with another kunai to disable his left arm. Sasuke then shouted instructions.

"Listen, this is rough, but I have no choice!" He hollered to Sakura, "Don't stand around there may be others! Listen!! Relax for a moment and you really will be killed!!" After speaking this, the nin landed only to jump away to hide.

"Damn, he got away," Sasuke murmured.

The three nin regrouped, and were sat closely together. Haku was annoyed, his eyebrow twitching and he decided that before Sasuke began to lay out a plan, that he would get his two cents in.

"Listen, some of these guys aren't ready to kill," he said quickly, "If the rain nin had been a seasoned killer, he wouldn't have told you to give him the scroll. He would have simply killed you and taken the scroll, then go back to take out Sakura just in case." He relaxed slightly, "We need to show them that we are prepared to kill them, and that we won't hesitate. Sasuke, that mercenary mission, how many people did you kill?"

"Only two," the Uchiha replied, "Kakashi-sensei got most of them while Shino drained them of chakra.

"But you have killed before. That gives us an advantage. Naruto himself might not have killed that many, but I worked beside Zabuza-sama for a couple of years. Sakura," He hesitated, and attempted to sound kinder for her sake, "You might end up having to kill someone during this mission…so you need to start building up your resolve now." She swallowed and nodded her head. Haku then leaned away slightly, showing Sasuke that he had the floor. He didn't hesitate to take control.

"If we get separated this time…even if its one of us, don't trust them. This could happen again," Sasuke spoke solemnly with his back hunched as he rested his forearm on his knee.

"Then what do we do?" Sakura asked, worried and still shaken.

"We'll make a code word just in case," Sasuke answered, motioning his hand slightly, "Listen, if they get the codeword wrong assume they are the enemy no matter what they look like. Listen carefully, I'll say it once…"

"Wait," Haku murmured, glancing behind the Uchiha at the suspicious hollow pole, "Lean foreword and whisper it in our ear…someone might be listening." He was using Naruto's eyes…there was someone under the ground…Sasuke nodded, and leaned in so they could feel each others breath on their face, and their noses were almost touching. Haku's keen hearing could pick up the very faint increase of Sakura's heartbeat, though it sounded extremely muffled.

"The nin song, 'Nin Machine'," Sasuke murmured, and it was so light that they could barely hear it, "When you're asked this, answer with…'A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi. Hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when an enemy is tired and ill prepared.'" He finished quickly, and the two nodded, Sakura quietly saying 'Ok!'. "I'll hold the scroll," Sasuke said standing up quickly. Sakura started as a sharp leaf zoomed pass her face, leaving behind a scratch.

"Wha…" She didn't get to finish, because thousands of the sharp leaves shot by, and the three shot up.

"More enemies?!!" Sasuke shouted, surprised. They braced themselves as the leaves cut at their clothes, and lifted up the dirt around them. The barrage finally slowed, and the dust began to settle and revealed three grass nin.

"You guys just play over there," the leader said, "I'll take care of these three myself."

Sasuke moved quickly, hiding behind a bush. 'Shit,' he thought, 'Where are the others?' He started as he heard a sound behind him, whirled around and saw the pink haired Sakura hurrying over. "Sakura…"

"Sasuke-kun!" she cried. Sasuke quickly pulled out a kunai to defend himself with.

"Stay away. First the code word. The nin song, 'Nin Machine'."

"Oh yeah!" Sakura exclaimed, "A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi. Hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when an enemy is tired and ill prepared."

"Good." Sasuke said, relaxing slightly when Haku ambled through the bushes.

"Oww…are you guys alright?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Naruto, wait," Sasuke instructed, "The codeword?" The blond blanched.

"Er…Sorry Sasuke, I don't remember…heh heh." The Uchiha didn't hesitate and threw a kunai at the blond. The blond impersonator quickly dodged with an exclamation.

"So this time it's someone good enough to dodge my attacks?" He asked, and Naruto smirked.

"I see…you are smart, to have kept so quiet." The stray nin said. "This should be more fun then I thought."

-

Naruto blinked, and groaned. What…what had happened? He didn't…remember anything since the test. The exam!! What happened!? He groaned again and felt dirt shuffle underneath him. Wait…dirt? He turned over onto his back, and balked as he saw a huge snake hovering over him. "WHAAA!?!" He cried, just as the snake engulfed him "DAMN YOU!! BARF ME OUT!!!" He squirmed inside the tight enclosure of the snakes stomach, when he remembered his food contest with Sasuke back in wave that had caused them both to puke. "TAKE THIS! KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!!!" The snake exploded in a spray of guts and Naruto stood proudly on a tree branch while his clones dispersed around him.

"Ok, time to go find Sakura and Sasuke…in the mean while, Haku, what the hell happened?!"

_Lost you…finished…second test….forest of death…team mates…in danger…shinobi…_ his voice was weak, and this worried the blond.

"Hey, hey! Haku, what's going on!?" He asked.

_Energy low…have codeword…lyrics to nin machine. _Haku's voice had grown so weak that Naruto could only barely heard him.

"Hey, save your energy so you can tell me the code word when they ask," Naruto instructed, "Thank you, Haku."

…_no….prob…_

Naruto frowned, before gazing into the forest and picking up three auras. Two were the familiar auras of his team mates (which, to his horror, were tainted heavily with fear) and a third that showed a very powerful nin who was definitely not a genin. "Shit," he murmured. He ran quickly, chakra stored into his legs, and before long he was on a branch above the space where his team mates were watching as an extremely flexible nin wrapped around the tree. He quickly tossed four shuriken and a kunai.

"Sorry Sasuke," He called, "Haku filled me in as best as he could, he's a bit tired right now. And as for the code word…"

… _A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi. Hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when an enemy is tired and ill prepared. _Naruto dutifully recited it in time with Haku, and grinned cheekily at the avenger. "Sorry I'm late." Silence echoed around the enclosure until Sakura spoke.

"Great job, Naruto!" she cried, sounding relieved. Sasuke on the other hand sounded distraught.

"Naruto, I'm glad you're here now, but please! Run away!" He looked panicked, "This one's on a whole other level!!" Then, the grass nin chuckled before Naruto could respond.

"Heh heh, looks like you defeated the snake…Naruto-kun," he hissed, now mostly unraveled from the branch.

'Wow, this guy sure looks like a snake…so he was the guy who sent that huge thing after me.' Naruto thought, before speaking, "Hey! It looks like you're picking on the weak!" He crossed his arms and watched, only to be surprised when after a moments hesitation Sasuke held out the scroll towards the grass nin.

"I will give you the scroll," He bargained, "Please, take it and leave us."

"What!!" Naruto roared, while Sakura just looked confused. After some piecing together from the exhausted Haku, Naruto spoke again. "Sasuke, what the hell are you talking about!? Why would you give the scroll to an enemy!?"

"I see…" the snake like man said, "Very smart. The only way for pray to escape a predator is to give a predator a different meal."

"Take it!" Sasuke shouted, tossing the scroll in the air towards the grass nin. Before it was even halfway between then, Naruto had shot out of the tree and intercepted it. Sasuke glowered. "You bastard! What are you doing?! Do you even understand the situation!?" Naruto faced Sasuke, before landing a punch dead in Sasuke's face, scowling deeply. Sasuke flew back, before landing on a separate branch.

"What was that all the sudden!?"

"You're Sasuke's fake, aren't you?" Naruto said harshly.

"You total moron!" Sasuke yelled, "I'm the real Sasuke!"

"Liar," Naruto accused, "There is no way a stupid coward like you is the Sasuke I know!! I don't know how strong this guy is but what guarantee is there that he'll let us go if we give him the scroll? You're the one too freaked out to understand the situation!!" His glare never lessened as he watched the Uchiha stare at him in surprise. His head was unusually quiet, and he wasn't used to it.

"Heh heh…Naruto-kun," the snake man chuckled, his abnormally long tongue licking the side of his own face, "You are correct!" He watched, amused, as Sasuke started, and lifted his sleeve to reveal signs tattooed on, "Since I can just," he bit down on his thumb, "Kill you and take the scroll." He moved his hand and slid it down his arm. Naruto didn't notice as he turned towards him and began to run, eyes narrowed.

"Shut up!!" He snarled, pulling out a kunai.

"NO!! RUN AWAY!! NARUTO!!!" Sasuke yelled, eyes wide.

'Dammit,' Naruto thought, 'Sasuke, I've lost respect for you.'

"_Kuchiyose no Jutsu."_ The man said, and smoke began to swirl around him. Naruto leapt into the air with a fist prepared to smack the man in the cheek, when a large snake appeared with the man standing on its forehead. Naruto started, unable to stop himself as he continued to hurtle towards the snake. The snake moved quickly, and smashed into the tree back underneath Naruto and sent splinters the size of a human spiraling in every direction.

"NARUTO!!!" his two teammates shouted, their eyes wide in horror, while Naruto grunted as a splinter bounced into his back causing blood to spurt forth from his mouth. He fell into the air limply and the snake man chuckled, before instructing his snake.

"Go ahead and eat him," he allowed maliciously. Naruto's eyes were barely open as he fell downwards towards the awaiting snake. Sasuke felt horror rush through him as he watched his teammate face ultimate doom.

Meanwhile, to Naruto it felt as if time had frozen. He felt shocks run through his body as familiar chakra burst through his system, one he had thought he wouldn't feel for a long while. His mind worked a hundred miles an hour, and it was as if time had frozen with him hanging in mid air, and he heard an angry roar resonating through his head.

'**KIIIIT!!!! What the hell! I was in the middle of a nice dream of pillaging and eating, only to wake up from a nap that should have lasted a minimum of three years to find that it hadn't even been one year, and your about to be eaten by a giant fucking SNAKE!!!!!!' **Naruto never felt so relieved in his life. 'Kyuubi! You're back! God, I never thought I would say thins, but god did I miss you!!! How did you come back?'

'**That friend of yours, Hapu or whatever, has been eroding away at the seal since that mercenary mission. He used the last of his energy when you got hit by that giant log there.' **Kyuubi explained, and Naruto imagined him waving his paw slightly in nonchalance, **'But seeing as how your about to die, I'll save the chastising for later. How abut a coming back gift?' **Naruto had no chance to reply, because he felt the familiar red chakra fill his system. Feeling his wounds heal, he twisted in the air with his eyes fading to a bloody red with slits for pupils, and thick whisker marks, and as he slammed his fist into the snakes snout, he shouted;

"EAT SHIT!!!"

He pummeled the snake towards the ground, and his eyes connected with the enemies golden ones, and glared with so much hatred that if looks could ill the man would be writhing on the floor. The splinters of wood that had landed on the ground shot back up into the air. And as Naruto bounded in the air away from the snake, it's master took a deep breath and blew out a gust of wind that blew the jinchuriki off course and causing him to land on the ground harshly. The snake then dashed foreword towards the Uchiha as the avenger watched in stunned silence.

"Sasuke-kun, now it's your turn!! What will you do?!!"

"Sasuke-kun!!!" Sakura cried.

Before anyone could react, Naruto had lurched forward from the ground and dug two kunai into the snakes snout, using all of his strength to stop it not a foot away from Sasuke. The avenger stared wide eyed at the blond, whose head was hung as he panted. When he spoke, Sasuke jumped in tense surprise.

"Hey…you alright…" Naruto looked up and allowed his red eyes to make eye contact with the surprised Uchiha, "Scaredy-cat?"

The Uchiha stared at him with shocked silence. He was surprised that the blond managed to turn his own words against him so completely. Before either of them could react, a long pink tongue wrapped around the blonds arms and pulled him up t the creepy looking grass nin.

"Damn it! Let go of me!!!" Naruto growled at the shinobi. The only reaction from the man was chuckle as he pulled Naruto closer, so that their faces where almost touching. As he spoke, he made hand signs.

"Hehe…So the Nine-Tails brat is still alive," Naruto jumped in surprise, before glaring at the nin angrily. He didn't phase him though, and the man kept talking, "When you r emotions are heightened the power of the nin tails over flows…interesting," He sounded like a sick, demented mad scientist. Naruto held back bile as the nin used his abnormally long tongue to lift up his shirt. The only thing going through the blonds head was, 'Oh shit, he looks like a freaky rapist! And I'm his next victim!!!'

"Oh my," the man said and stirred the blond from his thoughts, "The seal is visible…" Before anyone could react, his fingertips connected with Narutos gut causing him to cry out in pain.

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto is…!!"

The blonds eyes widened, before narrowing in a slight daze. The enemy dug though his pouch and pulled out the heaven scroll and tossed him over his shoulder towards a tree.

"Naruto!!!" Sakura cried, tossing a kunai so it caught his jacket and pinned him safely to a tree. She turned and faced Sasuke, who stood frozen as he stared at the snake shinobi. Anger filled her, and she decided to once chastise the perfect Uchiha.

"Sasuke-kun!" When he barely responded, she felt tears of anger well up an she yelled at him again, "It's true that unlike you, Naruto is clumsy and can get in the way buy…" she breathed in deep, and shouted the next words, "At least he's not a coward!! Right!!!"

Her strong words stuck a cord deep within the avenger, bringing forth memories he wished had been buried long ago with his family. Why was he remembering this now? He tightened his fists. How could he face Itachi claiming to show no fear…when he couldn't even try and defeat this nin. If he died here, at least he would die fighting! Not fighting for is life, oh no, but fighting for the lost lives of he innocent Uchiha's, for the innocent blood that was spilt by their own kin…!

His eyes snapped open with the legendary sharingan spinning in his eyes, and he dug in his pouch for weapons. E found them, and with them he found the power to charge at the snake man with anger clear in his eyes, in his stance.

If he were to die, he would die fighting.

-

Sakura stared at her teammates with worry clear on her features as she placed a wet cloth on the Uchiha's. She frowned. 'His fevers getting slightly better…' she then steeled her resolve. 'I will protect them!'

She waited for a moment, she didn't quite know how long, before she moistened the towel again, wrung it out, and placed it on his forehead tenderly. The forest was silent, and she felt her eyelids droop. She started, and shook her head quickly. She couldn't fall asleep, not now!! She squinted and glanced up only to see the sun shining through the trees. She blinked. The sun was up…?

She heard a snap, and her muscles tense. No! Not now!!! She quickly and discreetly pulled out a kunai and held it tightly in front of her. Her body began to shake, and slowly, she began to turn her head.

Only to feel like an idiot as she spotted a cute squirrel.

"Geez, don't scare me." She murmured. When the animal began to near her, though her eyes widened and she tossed the kunai in front if it. It squeaked in surprise, before running of. She breathed a sigh of relief before returning her attention to the Uchiha before her. Her eyes flickered to the Uzumaki, and she prayed he would awaken soon. It was so quiet. She sighed and continued caring for them when she heard a voice that she remembered from the first exam.

"Hehe…up all night?" She froze, and turned quickly to spot the sound shinobi, the one with the wrappings covering his face, talking to her. "But it's n longer necessary. Wake up Sasuke-kun. We want to fight him." Sakura stiffened and quietly began to reach for her weapons pouch.

"What are you talking about?" She asked loudly, bravely, "I know someone named Orochimaru is pulling the strings from the shadows!! What is his purpose!??" All three started and stared at her with wide eyes. Sakura just continued, "What's this weird mark on Sasuke-kun's neck!?! You did this to him…and now you want to fight?!!"

There was a beat of silence before the furry one spoke, "Hmm…I wonder what that man is thinking.." Sakura tilted her head slightly in confusion. The taller, spikey haired one spoke next.

"But after hearing that, we can't let you go. I'll kill this girl. And I'll kill this Sasuke guy." He announced, grinning wickedly, about to step foreword.

"Wait Zaku." The furry one instructed.

"Huh? Why?"

"You aren't very good…" he replied, ending down and observing the dirt, "a recently upturned stone, different colored dirt. Grass doesn't grow here." Sakura gulped, "A booby trap…it's pointless unless it goes unnoticed."

"Hn stupid," Zaku murmured, "Kunai was to prevent the dquirell from setting off the trap."

"Well since we have no use fro the girl," the hunched over one spoke maliciously, "Kill her." The three jumped up simultaneously to avoid setting off the trap, and Sakura simply smirked and cut the hidden wire beside her that sent a…

"Giant log!???" Furry cried as the said log hurtled towards them, "Another trap above!?!? Oh no!!!" Sakura felt the satisfaction she had felt disappear as the man smirked and placed a hand on the log, "Yeah right…" he made a single sign and a hole was punched through the log allowing the sound nin safe passage. Sakura's jaw dropped, but no sound came out.

"Frankly speaking you have no talent. People like you have to work harder." The furry man chastised her heartlessly, "A weakling lke you shouldn't mess with guys like us." Sakura felt tears well up in her eyes, only for relief to shoot through her as familiar green spandex jumped in and while kicking the three out of the way, cried out…

"Leaf spinning wind!!!" The three landed, some not so gracefully, wile Lee landed in front of Sakura with the aforementioned squirrel on his shoulder.

"hen you guys should also work harder," he said with his hand in front of him in a tempting manner.

"Who are you?" the furry man spoke angrily, glaring at the spandex clad nin.

"The beautiful green beast of the hidden leaf…Rock Lee!!!"

Silence echoed around the field while Lee stood in front of team seven proudly, staring down the three sound nin before him. Sakura then broke the tense silence,

"W…Why are you here?" she asked softly, confused. Lee simply smiled, though she couldn't see, and lifted the squirrel off of his shoulder.

"I will always appear when you are in trouble." He said kindly, before placing the squirrel n the ground and gave it a soft pat to indicate it should scurry. Sakura absently leaned foreword with widened eyes as Lee straightened up and faced the sound trio again. Sakura felt tears well in her eyes.

"Well…thank you. You saved me." She said kindly. Lee continued to face his opponents as he spoke.

"I said it before. I will protect you until I die." Sakura started in surprise, before she felt guilt fill the bottom of her stomach. The furry man simply removed the scroll from his possession and tossed it to Zaku.

"Oh well…Zaku, you can have Sasuke-kun." Zaku caught the scroll without a second thought. "I'll take care of them." His eyes narrowed and he began to move foreword. Sakura, with determination in her eyes, pulled free a kunai and tossed it towards him only for him to jump and avoid it. He was headed towards Lee when the spandex clad ninja crouched and plunged his arm into the soil beneath him and yanked up a larger then normal tree root to block him.

"There is some trick to your attacks, right?" Lee asked and stated a the same time, "I'm not going to just simply dodge it since I've seen your attacks before," The hunched over man seemed surprised, while the other two were seemingly unimpressed. Lee then bowed his head as the sound nin began to charge, and allowed his bandages begin to unwind from his arms. He made a quick seal in front of his face, before crouching as the nin came close.

And then he was gone.

"He vanished!" the nin cried, only to be cut off by Lee slamming his foot upwards into the mans jaw. He then launched himself off of the ground and was behind him in no time.

"It's not over," Lee cautioned, before his bandages wrapped around him tightly. He began to spin quickly and hurtled towards the ground. Zaku began to panic and form hand seals.

"Dosu can't protect himself like that!! He's in trouble!!"

"Take this!" Lee cried as they neared the ground at alarming speeds while Zaku slammed his hands into the ground. Lee jumped away as Dosu connected, and stated as an odd sensation filled him.

"Phew…" Zaku sighed, "Looks like I made it in time."

Lee landed on the balls of his feet and the palms of his hands and he started in amazement while Dosu pulled himself from the ground with an exhale of breath. "No way!!"

"What a terrifying technique, this much damage even on a sponge of dirt…" He face Lee, and pulled up his sleeve to reveal, "Now its my turn." Lee didn't move, though he cursed to himself, as Dosu charged him. Lee barely managed to move away, but he was still too close as his vision blurred and gave the offender an odd shape.

"If your moves are at high speed," Dosu explained, "Then ours are at sound speed. I'll show you a wall that no amount of hard work can surpass." Lee grunted as he landed on his knees with a hand placed on the ground in front if him. Lee wobbled for a second, before bile lifted up in his throat and he emptied his stomach on the ground.

"Lee-san!" Sakura cried, eyes wide.

Lee's eyes widened as he felt blood ooze from his right ear lobe. He clutched it with his hand and his face scrunched up in agony. Dosu held out his arm in front of him as to show off the contraption.

"There's a trick here," He explained, "You can't just dodge my attacks." He said, and then he chuckled, "It's sound. Even if you dodge my attacks, my sound will still attack you. Do you know what sound really is?" Sakura hesitated, before realization sank in.

"Vibrations…" she said softly.

"Correct. Hearing sound means that your eardrums are catching the vibrations of the air." He explained, tugging on his own ear for emphasis, "And the human eardrum will break once exposed to sounds exceeding 150 mhz. and deeper within the ear lies the inner ear, which when that is damaged throws off your balance." He chuckled again, "You won't be able to move your body as you wish for a while."

"Lame old Taijutsu," Zaku said haughtily, "won't work against us." Lee's eyes narrowed at the jab, "But you did good." He withdrew his hands from the ground" You made me use my jutsu. Of course you failed." He smirked, a very Sasuke-esque move, as he showed of the holes drilled into his hands "I can freely control super sonic sound waves and air pressure. I have to power to destroy even rock. So of course, sending air waves through the ground to cushion the fall was no issue. The sounds techniques are different from your stupid techniques."

Lee felt anger bubble up inside of him. How dare they insult Gai-sensei's taijutsu!? He glared heatedly at them, but it did nothing to faze them. Behind him, Sakura's eyes widened in alarm. What was going to happen now?

"Alright," Dosu said, interrupting their thoughts, "Now you!" He lifted his arm and charged the Haruno girl. Her eyes widened, while Lee swore to himself as he attempted to move. 'Here he comes!' Sakura thought with determination as she steeled herself.

To both of the nins surprise, Lee hurtled in between the two and rotated to send a roundhouse kick to Dosu's neck. "Leaf spinning wind!!" Dosu cursed and placed his hand on Lee's leg causing the green beast to grunt and wince in pain. Dosu seemed to relax.

"So the attack affected you after all," he mused. "You scared me for a moment. You've lost the ability to do repeated Taijutsu in a flash," He grinned from behind the bandages and threw a punch with his mechanical arm and Lee blocked it with his forearm and an open palm. What seemed to be air burst from the holes.

"These holes amplify the small sounds to their ultimate level," Dosu explained with a chuckle. "You could say it's a speaker. But of course, the direction of my arms doesn't affect the directions of the sound. I use my chakra to make sure the sound always hits my prey!"

Lee cried out as the sound waves entered his ear, and Sakura in turn called out his name, her eyes wide and worry her main emotion. The green beast fell to the ground in a heap of pain, while Dosu stood over him with an arm raised to strike. "Now, lets finish this,"

"I won't let you!" Sakura cried, four shuriken and four kunai in between her fingers, and she dashed foreword and tossed the kunai quickly, which he blocked with his heavily protected arm. He sighed in exasperation. Sakura simply continued, and her four shuriken followed the kunai only to be intercepted by Zaku, who used the holes in his hands to blast the shuriken back towards her causing her to cry out in surprise.

Then, just as she steadied herself, the female member of the group grabbed her hair unceremoniously and tightly in her hand, forcing the Haruno to her knees. She cried out as the grip tightened.

"Much more luster then mine," the woman said before scoffing, "Trying to be a sexy ninja? Ha. If you have time to treat your hair, then train, you female swine." She pressed her hand into the back of Sakura's head and was rewarded with another cry of pain. Kin grinned, "Zaku, kill that Sasuke guy in front of this boy chaser's eyes. Let's teach this one a lesson."

"Haha, good idea," Zaku praised.

"Don't move!" the elder woman instructed harshly, and Sakura felt her fists tighten in the dirt. That was the only thing she could feel her body do. She winced, and heard Lee cry out her name from he position on the ground. She had to do something!! Sasuke-kun would die!!! 'I…am still just getting in the way' she thought desperately with tears spilling from her green eyes and onto the floor. 'Always being protected,' her mind first flashed to Lee, then to Sasuke and Naruto. '…I have to protect those that are important to me…'

"So, lets do it," Zaku said happily, with his mouth still upturned in a seemingly permanent smirk. He began to walk towards Sasuke chuckling all the way. Sakura then pulled a kunai from her pouch causing the female to scoff.

"That won't work against me." She chastised haughtily. Sakura looked over her shoulder at the woman, smirking.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

Before any of the observers could react, she yanked her hand up and sliced off half of her hair and sent the woman tumbling backwards. It all seemed to happen in slow motion as she stood, and allowed herself to wallow in her thoughts.

'_I always thought of myself as a proud ninja. I always said I liked Sasuke-kun, and I would chastise Naruto as if I were better then him,'_ she thought, _'but when it came down to it I would watch them from behind. Yet…they always fought to protect me…Lee-san…you always said you liked me…and with your back to me you risked your life and fought…I feel like I've learned from you,' _She began to rise with determination shining throughout her very being, _'I want to be like you guys!!'_

'Everyone…this time…get a good look at my back!!'

She stood with pride, her back to her friends as she stared down the enemy for the first time. Zaku cursed and turned away from the Uchiha.

"Kin!! Kill her!!"

The burnet charged immediately with four senbon in her hands, and Sakura began making seals just as Zaku started to form his own. Kin then bumped into Sakura from behind only for her to be replaced with a log. Zaku grinned, before Sakura came at him from the right with weapons in her hands. "Kin! Get out of the way! He instructed as he held out his hands. Sakura tossed the weapons and he scoffed. "Useless." Sakura formed another set of seals as the kunai brushed past her and Zaku scoffed again. "Is that all you know!? Useless!" As she was replaced, he looked up and saw her coming down on him with her hands in a seal.

"I've already told you, it's useless!" he cried again, tossing kunai towards her quickly. "Time to get serious!!" He looked away as the weapons connected, and looked around. "Now, where are…" He was cut off as he looked up again and saw her with kunai lodged into her arms, and her own kunai in her hands. She connected with him and shoved the kunai into his forearm. He moved his hand to hit her, only for her to clamp down on his arm with her teeth. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Hey! Get off of me!!"

She didn't let go, and in response she bit down harder and her eyes narrowed with determination. "Let go of me!" she tightened her bite with determination, and made sure her teeth dug deep into his arm. Her eyes screwed up in determination as her jaw began to ache, but she didn't let go, only shifting to keep his wrist tight in her mouth. Finally, after what seemed to be hours, Zaku successfully tossed her off of him and her teeth tore through his shirt.

"You brat!" He shouted angrily. Before anyone could react, team ten had jumped out from the bushes to stand protectively in front of the bloodied girl, with Shikamaru dragging Chouji by his scarf. Sakura stared in surprise and stared wide eyed. Zaku scoffed, "Pft. More weirdoes."

"Ino…" Sakura murmured, and the blond interrupted her briskly.

"I told you, Sakura, I won't loose to you." She said with a smirk. Sakura wearily lifted herself from the ground and stared at her in surprise.

"Ino…why?"

"I'm not going to let you be the one who gets to look good in front of Sasuke-kun." Ino said with a smirk. Dosu sighed in annoyance.

"So, more Konoha insects have crawled out into the open?" He asked. Chouji watched with wide eyes.

"What are you two thinking!!" Chouji asked, " These guys are too strong, We'll be eaten!!" He then tugged at his scarf, "Shikamaru, let go of my scarf!!"

"Yeah right, idiot." Shikamaru replied and keeping a firm grasp on his scarf, "If Ino's going to fight then us men can't just run away."

"Sorry to get you guys involved," Ino apologized though she didn't sound very apologetic, "But we're a team, and we share the same destiny." Shikamaru simply smirked.

"Don't worry, we'll get through this some how." He said simply. Zaku smirked from his position.

"Hehe, you can leave if you want," he said, "Fatty…" Chouji froze.

"What did he say? I didn't quite her him…" the Akimichi said dangerously, and Shikamaru winced in sympathy for the man.

"What!?" The man asked in shock, "I said if you want to you can run away. You fat ass!"

"I'M NOT A FAT ASS!!!" Chouji screamed at the top of his lungs, "I'M JUST CHUBBY, DAMN IT!!!" He threw his arms up in the air, "Hurray for chubby!! Alright!" he turned with fire in his eyes and looked at his partners, "You guys know right! This is a war between the leaf and the sound!!"

"Man, this is going to suck," Shikamaru said, though a small smirk crossed his features.

"That's our line," Zaku said with a scowl. Ino didn't turn as she addressed the Haruno.

"Sakura! Look after them!" she instructed, and Sakura nodded in determination as she approached her KO'ed friends. Ino returned to her enemies.

"Alright! Team Ino full power!!" she shouted, "Alright!! Ino-Shika-Cho formation! Chouji, do your thing!!"

"Alright!" he said, forming hand seals. He then expanded to a large ball and his arms, legs, and head seemed to go inside of the ball much like a tutle. Without hesitation, he rolled towards Zaku, who scoffed.

"What's this stupid jutsu?" He asked, "It's just a rolling fat ass," He held his hands out, only to be surprised as the ball launched upwards. "What!? It went into the air!?" he frowned, and crossed his arms in front of him. If he tried to block him, his arms would be crushed. Dosu then acted and dashed towards his endangered teammate. Shikamaru acted quickly, and formed quick hand seals that caused his shadow to expand and connect with Dosu's. The nin froze, and took the stance Shikamaru was in. He was shocked, and then he placed his fingertips on top of his head in a comical position against his will.

"What the!?!" Dosu asked surprised. Kin felt a muscle twitch in her forehead.

"Dosu! What are you doing at a time like this!?" She asked angrily. Shikamaru took the chance and shouted,

"Ino! Now there's just the girl!"

"Kay! Watch over my body!" She quickly made the seals, and as her body went limp Shikamaru caught it with a grunt. Kin's body straightened, before her eyelids drooped. Meanwhile, Chouji had returned to normal size and was setting on the ground trying to regain a sense of balance.

"Whoa…every things spinning…" he commented woozily.

"It's over now!" Ino shouted through Kin's body, holding a kunai threateningly in front of her. "If you don't want it to end here, leave your scroll and get outta here. I'll let this kin girl go when I can't sense your chakra!" when Zaku and Dosu simply chuckled, Ino was surprised. "What…they're…" Sakura seemed to realize what was going on sooner.

"No! They are…No!" She reached from her crouched position. Zaku kept chuckling as he held out an arm in Kin's direction and sent out a blast of air that sent Kin's body hurtling into the wall. Blood slipped from her mouth, and she fell to the ground weakly.

"Ino!" Shikamaru shouted while Ino tried to push Kin's body up.

"These guys…hurting their own comrade…" Ino said in surprise.

"Heh, you are confused," Zaku said with a smirk.

"Our goal is not the stupid scrolls nor the completion of the exam." Dosu said, "It's Sasuke-kun!!" All of the rookies were surprised at this, and Shikamaru curse as his shadow retracted and freed Dosu. "Ah, so this jutsu's time limit is five minutes. That girls jutsu, looks like she can enter her spirit into another persons body. But it seems that killing Kin would also kill the girl."

"Bah, I can't take any more of this."

Everyone turned in surprise and saw Neji and TenTen standing on a tree branch observing the fight. "Watching these minor sound nins bullying these second rate shinobi and declaring victory?" Neji questioned.

"What!?" Dosu voiced angrily, eyebrows hunched.

"They keep coming like cockroaches," Zaku murmured. Neji ignored them.

"You made a mistake, Lee…That knocked out freak over there," He said, "he is from our team…and you're going to pay for that!" The veins around his eyes bulged, and you could faintly see the pupil in his otherwise lavender eyes. Everyone started in surprise, and watched with fascination as his eyes changed. Neji nonchalantly crossed his arms in front of his chest, "If you are going to go any further, I am going all out…huh?" His face didn't change expression save for a slight frown turning the corner of his mouth.

"If you don't like it so much," Dosu said haughtily, "Then stop acting cool and come down…"

"No," Neji replied simply with no emotion in his voice. He deactivated his Byakugan, and closed his eyes and amusement traced his features. "It seems that is no longer necessary." Sakura turned, and she felt excitement and relief rush through her as she spotted Sasuke getting to his knees shakily.

"Sasuke-kun, you're awake!" she cheered, but as soon as she said it, her face turned confused and surprised.

Odd black markings had spiraled around him save for the right side of his body, and evil chakra was seeping off of him. He looked completely scary. "Sakura…who…did that too you?" he asked darkly.

"Sasuke-kun…" she trailed off.

"Who is it?" While Dosu kept quiet, Zaku smirked proudly.

"We did," he gloated. There was dead silence in the clearing.

"Sasuke-kun," Sakura said, "Your body…"

"Don't worry," He responded, clenching and unclenching his fist, "not only that…but I feel power overflowing from within me…" He grinned, "I feel great." He was silent for a heartbeat, before he spoke again, "He gave it to me. Now I understand…I am an avenger. Even if I must eat the devils fruit, I am on a path where I must gain power…" Zaku's smirk and faded and he watched the Uchiha warily. He looked up and eyes the three sound nin.

"Now…it was you guys, right?"

Zaku scoffed, while Dosu remained silent. Ino gasped, and Shikamaru called out to her.

"Ino, This is bad! You'll get caught up! Return to your body, were hiding! Come on Chouji!" He grabbed his friend by the scarf and ran while Ino quickly made the seal to escape Kin's body. In Shikamaru's arms, Ino began to move and he sighed with relief. "Your back…oh good."

Sasuke felt anger well up inside of him, and then his scowl grew larger as his chakra bean to circulate even more. On the ground, Kin began to regain consciousness. Sasuke's gaze was pure evil when he stared down the sound nins.

"His chakra is too large!!" Dosu cried, while Zaku scoffed and made hand seals.

"Are you kidding? We can handle this half dead freak!" He held his arms out towards Sasuke.

"No, Zaku!" Dosu cried, "Don't you realize!?!"

"_Ultimate Zankuuha!!" _Zaku shouted, and chakra burst from his palms, and that was all that was visible to him. Every surrounding observer braced themselves against the winds that occurred as a side effect and grunted from strain. When the dust began to fade, Zaku smirked. "Hah. I've blown him away."

"Blown who away?"

Zaku started, and barely turned to see Sasuke, with Sakura and Naruto safely in front of him, with his arm raised. Before he could do anything, Sasuke's arm had connected with the back of Zaku's head and sent him flying towards Dosu. He was just getting up when Sasuke had completed more hand seals and had inhaled deeply. "_Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!_" He exhaled around seven fireballs towards the two sound nin. Zaku scoffed.

"Hah! I can just blow them away" He gloated. But, when he tried only the flames diminished around several shuriken. "What!?" as he raised his arms to guard himself from the shuriken, Sasuke moved quickly. Dosu cried out in warning,

"Zaku, below!!!"

"Huh?" But the warning was too late. Sasuke had grabbed both of Zaku's arms and placed his foot against Zaku's back He was grinning sadistically as he kept his arms in a tight grip, while Zaku tried to look at him from over his shoulder. Both Sakura and Ino wondered what had happened to the Sasuke-kun they had known and loved.

"Heh Heh, so you're proud of these two arms?" Sasuke said, still grinning. Zaku looked confused, but the confusion was replaced with pain as Sasuke forced his foot down and pulled with his arms. Sakura felt horror rush through her as a sickening snap, accompanied by a scream, filled the humid forest air. Tears filled her eyes as she watched Sasuke turn towards Dosu. _'This…'_

"You're the only one left."

'_This isn't…'_

"I hope you let me have more fun."

'_This isn't Sasuke-kun!!!'_

Tears formed in her eyes, and she closed them tightly as she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his torso and burrowing her face into his back. "STOP!!!" she let out a soft sob and held him tighter, "Please…stop…".

As she held him, the seal began to disappear. When it had finally creeped away and remained only on the spot on his neck, he collapsed into Sakura with a grunt and she carefully cradled him. Dosu straightened slightly, and held out his scroll.

"You are strong," He complimented, though it didn't sound like one, "We can't defeat you this time." Dosu kneeled and placed the scroll on the ground, before fetching Zaku who was groaning in agony, "Here is a gift to you. Please let us leave. This may seem convenient, but there is something we must find out." He straightened, "But I will promise you this. If there is another time we shall meet in the exam, we will neither run nor hide." He moved, and picked up Kin around the waist.

"Wait!" Sakura cried, and Dosu turned his head in surprise. "Who is Orochimaru!? What did he do to Sasuke-kun!? Why to Sasuke-kun!?!"

"I don't know," Dosu lied, "We were merely sent to kill Sasuke." He turned then and swiftly left the clearing. Sakura watched with sad, yet determined eyes as the trio dissapered. Team ten burst from the bushes quickly.

"Are you guys okay?!"

"What should we do with Naruto? Kick him awake?"

"Can I do it??"

-

-

**((dies)) This was such a pain to write…three days!!!!!! I spent circa three days typing this up!!!**

**I hate this section of the story because I need it to go exactly the same (well, almost exactly) as the manga to get it moving, and I didn't know hoe people would react if I skipped over a lot of stuff, so this is what happened. Three days I could have spent….well, doing nothing down the drain because I had to keep switching between the manga and my word document so I could keep the story as accurate as possible!!!**

**I HATE THE CHUUNIN EXAMS!!!!!!!!!!**

**((Dies))**

**B.E.N.**


	10. Chapter 10

_Final Lifeline_

**By B.E.N**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

NaruHina

**Chapter Ten:**

"…Nobody's here…" Naruto said, his voice echoing off of the walls. With a small grunt of pain, Sasuke detached himself from around Sakura's shoulders, and wobbled for a second before straightening and giving her a pointed look while she held onto his hand carefully.

"Huh?" Sakura started, before smiling politely, and allowing him to go, "Oh, right." There was a few hesitant seconds of silence, before Naruto spoke.

"So…what're we gonna do?" He asked, starching the back of his head and looking around the empty tower. Sakura then looked up to spot a frame that was placed on the wall, and had words written inside of it.

"Hey, look!" She said and pointed at it. Naruto gazed steadily at it with scrunched eyes.

"Without…heaven…What the hell dose this mean?" He asked "It looks like it's missing some words there."

"It's probably about the scrolls," Sakura inferred. "I think it's telling us to open them." Naruto nodded in agreement before fishing out the scrolls from his kunai pouch, and handing one to Sakura who timidly grabbed it with shaking hands. Sasuke's face was completely serious was he watched the two grab the opening simultaneously.

"Okay…let's do this," Sasuke said, in hopes of moving the situation along. The two nodded, and slowly opened them simultaneously. They all were surprised on what was inside, but Sasuke was the first to react. "It's a summoning jutsu! Drop it!!" The two did so quickly, tossing them a good ways away from them. They watched carefully as the smoke cleared revealing what appeared to be a shape of a man. When it did clear, the three were startled.

"Hey," Iruka said, standing with his arms crossed, "Long time no see."

"What's going on!?" Sakura asked loudly.

"Looks like you guys had trouble," Iruka commented, while keeping his cool.

"Huh?" Naruto asked, confused, "Why was Iruka-sensei summoned?"

"At the end of this second test its set up so that we Chuunins meet up with the exam takers," He smiled brightly, "and I was the one who was aloud to greet you."

"Greet us?" Sakura asked. Iruka just pulled out a pocket watch, glanced at it, and sighed in relief.

"Just in time," he said, before tucking away the watch with a relieved smile. "All three of you just passed the second test. To celebrate I would treat you to Ramen, but.." He heard movement, and blinked and barely uttered a 'huh' before being tackled by an excited Naruto.

"WE PASSED!!!!"

-

Naruto glanced around at the remaining Genins. Amazingly, all of the rookies made it through the second test. Naruto was glad, don't misunderstand, but he was just surprised. Accompanying the rookies was Team Gai, The Sand Siblings, Kabuto's team, The Sound team, a Konoha team that Naruto hadn't had the pleasure of meeting yet, and another sound team that was all female.

"First off, for the second test, congratulations on passing!" Anko cried, glancing at the remaining twenty seven participants and gaining all of their attentions. Honestly she had thought they would go down to the single digit range, but ah well. She did cut it down by half. She waited for a second before speaking again, "Hokage-sama will now explain the third test!" she then stepped down, and said in a quieter, more polite voice, "Now, Hokage-sama, please."

"Yes," He responded, "for the coming third test…" He paused, seemingly changing his mind about something, "Before I explain that, there is something I would like for you to now concerning the real reason for this exam. Why do we have all the allianced countries taking the exam together?" He fiddled with the rim of his hat, "…'to promote friendships between the countries', 'to raise the levels of the shinobi.' I don't want you to be confused about the true meaning. This exam is…" he paused and took in all the eager faces, "A replacement for war among the allied countries." The room seemed shocked.

"What dose that mean?" Tenten asked curiously, knowing no one else would speak up.

"If you go back in time, the current allies were enemies who fought each other over who ruled. In order to prevent wasteful fighting, the stage that those countries chose for battle…that is the origins of this exam." Kiba was the one who spoke up then, quite angrily.

"Why the hell do we have to do that crap?! Isn't this thing for deciding who's a Chuunin!?" He seemed annoyed as his hand absentmindedly rested on top of Akamaru's head. The Hokage thought nothing of the outburst.

"That may be a fact, but on the other hand, this exam is all about building a countries prestige."

"Prestige?" Ino asked, confused.

"Leaders and influential individuals will be watching this exam. They make up the clients of the shinobi. The leaders of the countries will be there to watch your battles. If the strength of that country is clear, then they will gain more clients. If it is weak, they will loose clients. And if they are seen as week, they will loose clients." Kiba was silent as the Hokage glanced at him, and said nothing else. The Hokage continued, "And this will signal to potential enemy countries 'our village has this much power' and will send a political message to outsiders."

"Yeah, but why, why do we have to risk our lives in battle!?" Kiba burst again.

"The strength of the country is the strength of the village." The Hokage replied, rather stoically, "The strength of the village is the strength of the shinobi. A shinobi's true strength is born only through life-risking battle." Realization seemed to sink into the younger rookies.

'_Sarutobi-sama has a point, you know_,' Haku chimed in suddenly, causing the blond to start. Haku had been so quiet since that snake dude, he had almost forgotten he was there! '_Yeah, thanks for forgetting me, Naruto-kun'_. Several people glanced his way, but he acted as if nothing had happened. The Hokage continued once again.

"This exam is a place to see each others strengths, and to show off your own strength. It only has meaning because lives are at risk. And that is why those that have come before you have fought in the chuunin exam, for this dream that is meaningful."

"But…then why do you say stuff about it being for friendship?" Tenten spoke up yet again, genuinely confused.

"I said that in the beginning. I don't want you to confuse the purpose of this. By losing life and establishing balance, that is the meaning of friendship in the world of shinobi." Naruto saw a small bead of sweat drip from Sakura's forehead, and winced in sympathy for the girl. She really wasn't cut out for high-pressure conversations or lectures. "Before I begin the third test I will tell you one more thing. This is not just a test; this is a life risking battle with your dreams and your countries prestige on the line." Everyone was silent for a beat, when Naruto spoke quietly to himself (mostly, anyway).

"I get it," He murmured.

"I don't care what the meaning of it is," Gaara said impassively, "Just hurry up and tell us what this life risking battle entails." Naruto couldn't help but feel that he was…excited, to have such a battle.

"Yes, I'd like to explain the third test now…"

"Actually" The phrase was ended by a cough, and the attention in the room turned to the man who had just appeared in the room, in a crouch position from his recent appearance, "From here on, as the referee, will you please allow me, Gekkou Hayate…" He trailed off and the Hokage nodded.

"By all means," was his brief reply. The man straightened and faced his audience.

"Hello, everyone, I am Hayate. Before the first test there's…" he was cut off by two phlegmy coughs, "something I'd like you to do." He had bags under his eyes, and was wearing a tight cap over his untamed dark hair. Naruto briefly wondered if he was alright; he looked very sick…

"Umm…it's a preliminary for the third test to decide who gets to participate in the main event." The man continues, his voice seeming to get even hoarser the longer he went without coughing.

"Preliminary?" Sakura questioned.

"Preliminary?" Shikamaru cried in outrage, "What do you mean?"

"Sensei…" Sakura started, "I don't understand this preliminary but…why aren't all the people here allowed to participate in the next test?"

"Umm, because the first and second tests might have been too easy this year, and we have a bit to many people remaining," The sickly man explained politely, before coughing into his fist, "According to the Chuunin exam rules, we need to have a preliminary and reduce the numbers of the contestants for the third test."

"No way!" Ino said angrily.

"As Hokage-sama indicated earlier, there will be many guests at the third test, and the fights might take too long, we are limited on time…" He coughed again, "Umm...so anyway, those who are not feeling well," a cough seemed to highlight the irony of that statement, "Those who feel like quitting after these explanations…please come forward now since we will be starting the preliminary immediately."

"What?! Right now!?" both Kiba and Naruto cried simultaneously. They barely glanced at each other, before sighing and tensing up. Naruto gave a brief nod to himself.

'Alright! I promised Kabuto-san. I'm going to do my best!' he thought, clenching his fist. As if to smite him, Kabuto stepped foreword, raising his hand.

"Umm…I'm going to quit." He said sheepishly. Naruto started.

"Huh? Kabuto-san?" He allowed himself to loose his cool for a second, and old Naruto resurfaced. Even Sakura and Sasuke started in surprise.

"Umm…you're Yakushi Kabuto, from the leaf, right? You may leave now," Hayate instructed, clearing his throat, "Anyone else wishing to retire? Oh…um, I forgot to mention that from now on it is going to be individual battling. You may raise your hand based on your own judgment."

"Why are you quitting, Kabuto-san?" Naruto asked, blinking in surprise. Neji, who stood beside him, looked at him with what seemed to be annoyance.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, my body is all beat up," The silver haired man replied, "Actually, I haven't been able to hear out of my left ear since I got attacked by the sound nin in the fist test. And now, we'll have to risk our lives…I just…" he trailed off, allowing the message to get across. Naruto looked down in disappointment. The man he had promised he would stay in was quitting?

"I've seen him before. Didn't he quit during the finals last year?" Anko asked quietly from the front of the room, flipping through a chart, "What's he thinking? Yakushi Kabuto's data…he's failed six times."

"What kind of record is that?" Sarutobi asked, momentarily forgetting that he should be somewhat polite.

"Since his academy days, he's been the kind that doesn't stand out much. Average grades, finally graduated on his third try. His completed missions are two C-rank, 14 d-rank. No spectacular battle history here." Anko recited from the board, "But…"

"But?" Sarutobi leapt at the cliff hanger instantly.

"Its about his life before the academy," she mused, "Do you remember? That young boy brought back from the battle at bellflower-pass?"

"I do," he replied, "As I remember, a Jounin member of the medical team brought back a child of the enemy who had survived the battle. So, he's that child?" the room was quiet for a moment. Kabuto's partner leaned foreword and whispered quietly into Kabuto's ear.

"Don't take selfish actions. Remember Orochimaru-sama's orders?"

"I'll let you guys handle it. Especially you, Yoroi-san; with your ability there should be no problems. This is your chance to show your strength. I know you are frustrated that I have surpassed you."

"Orochimaru-sama's favorite…don't get to confident kid." Yoroi warned.

"I understand sempai." Kabuto said, before walking away. He gave a brief wave to team seven, before walking away with a dark look. Yoroi turned and looked at Sasuke, and when Sasuke returned the glare the Uchiha felt a wave of pain shoot from his curse mark. He clutched it, and glared at the floor. Sakura looked at him with worry, when Hayate spoke again.

"Umm, now there are no more retiring, right?" In a panic, Sakura acted.

"Sasuke-kun, you should quite the prelim too!" she cautioned. He looked at her, with a '!?' expression clear on his face. Naruto even uttered a quiet, 'huh?'. "You've been acting weird since that Orochimaru guy attacked you. That mark still hurts, right? If you continue…" she broke off, not wanting to finish the thought.

"Mark?" Naruto muttered, confused. He was now angry at himself for blacking out. Sakura shakily brought her hands up in front of her chest in a subconscious act to protect her self from the lash he was surely going to deliver.

"Please," She whimpered, before gently whipping away the stray tear that fell from her eyes, "I'm afraid…"

"Sakura-chan," Naruto murmured, and Sasuke stayed silent, his gaze slightly softened though.

"You are in no condition to fight now!" She cried, lowering her hands and leaning foreword slightly, "I can see it. You've been hiding the pain all this time"

"Be quiet," Sasuke warned angrily.

"Whatever you say, I'm going to tell sensei about the mark. Then," she reached foreword and Sasuke's hand snatched out and grabbed her wrist. Naruto started at how much violence he saw shielded by the small act.

"Shut up about the mark."

"Why are you so stubborn!" she protested, "I don't want to see you suffering anymore! To me you are…"

"This has nothing to with you," He cut her off quickly, "Stay out of my business." Sakura looked hurt as tears continued to build behind her emerald eyes.

"Sakura, I have told you before. I am an avenger. This isn't just a test to me. I don't care about Chuunin or what ever." Naruto raised an eyebrow, and wondered what the hell screwed up the Uchiha so badly. What kind of ninja didn't care about being a Chuunin? "Am I stronger? I just want to answer that. To fight strong guys here…and they are here." Naruto listened intently. "I can't forgive even you if you take that away from me."

"Baka!" Naruto scolded, "Stop acting cool! Sakura was just worried about…"

"Naruto." Sasuke interrupted, "you are one of the ones I want to fight." He was silent, before he grimaced and clutched at his neck.

"I knew it," Sarutobi murmured, hearing the confrontation from his position. Ibiki stood beside him.

"What should we do?" the interrogator asked.

"We should remove him from the exam." Anko said, "Have ANBU watching over him"

"He's the type that wouldn't easily agree to that." Kakashi intervened, "Since he's from that Uchiha clan, after all."

"Don't be foolish! We will force him out!" Anko whisper-shouted at him, "Just by releasing chakra the curse becomes active and forcibly pulls out chakra. It is a forbidden jutsu which eats at the users body. It's amazing that kid is still standing. He should be dead." She turned to the Hokage for help, "Hokage-sama?"

"What Orochimaru said is still on my mind. Let's let Sasuke continue and watch over the situation."

"Hokage-sama!" Anko protested.

"But if the curse begins activating and releasing chakra, jump in and stop him."

"Yes," Ibiki agreed. A beat of silence.

"Um…now...let's begin the preliminary round." Hayate said, "This preliminary will consist of one on one fighting. You will basically fight as if in a real life confrontation. Since we now have twenty six participants, we will have thirteen match ups and the winners of the fights will advance to the third test."

"There are basically no rules. The battle continues until one of you dies or gets knocked out or admits defeat. Um…." He coughed harshly, "If you don't want to die, I suggest that you admit defeat, but when I decide that the winner has clearly been established," he coughed "um…since we don't want to pointlessly increase the amount of corpses, I'll jump in and stop things. And the object that controls your destiny is…"

"Open it." Anko murmured into her mike, and a large screen was revealed, hanging on the wall.

"Is this…This electronic scoreboard will show the match ups for each battle. Now, this may be sudden but let's go ahead and announce the names of the fist two fighters." Everyone simultaneously looked up, and awaited the first names. The board span quickly, before 'Kurokaze Hikari VS Yaseineko Hebi' flashed onto the screen. He watched as the only all female team straightened in surprise.

He hadn't really paid much attention to the all female team through the whole thing, only really sensing their presence. They were each very different, but the only thing in common was their black outfits and the sound headband that they wore in various places of their bodies. Naruto diverted his attention then to Hayate as he spoke.

"Will everyone except the two participants please move to the upper level?" He asked, and the other nin, who would now become observers, were quickly making their way towards the balcony that circled the whole arena. He saw where Sasuke and Sakura stood, and saw where team eight stood with a nervous Hinata gently pressing together her index fingers.

'Hey, I haven't seen Hinata-chan in a while!' He realized, before quickly moving towards the team, 'I'm gonna go talk to her.'

'Thank god,' Haku murmured, leaving the blond confused. He shrugged off the souls comment, and was beside the now blushing Hyuuga heiress in no time. He smiled brightly and rubbed the back of his head.

"Hey, Hinata-chan, how's it going?" he asked, and the Hyuuga smiled shyly though her blush started to fade.

"F-fine. I-I've been training r-really hard since we last saw each other." She said proudly, and nodding her head as if to assure herself that she had improved. The Uzumaki's grin widened.

"Wow, that's great, Hinata-chan!" he complimented, "Well, as much as I would like to keep talking to you, I wanna pay attention to this fight. I don't know anything about these two!" Hinata simply nodded and smiled in reply, and by now she had relaxed a bit and allowed her blush to fade almost completely. She had even hesitated with pushing her fingers together. Naruto returned the gesture, before turning to the arena where the two girls seemed to finally move.

Naruto watched as the tallest girl and the shortest girl of the team simultaneously jumped over to the middle of the arena. The shorter one landed gracefully on bent knees with her arms flowing out behind her and a light green hue surrounding her feet, while the taller one landed in a crouched position, palms flat on the ground, and then they straightened to await Hayate's signal.

The shortest girl had deep black hair that seemed like a black hole. It was cropped short (to her chin) and sat in soft ringlets that framed her face, while her bangs were straight as a rod. Her outfit was a short black kimono that reached just above her mid thigh, and was held together with a bright white tie. The dress was low cut and did reveal quite a bit of cleavage that was guarded by thin metal mesh while her sleeves were long and brushed her black fingertips. Underneath the outfit was more mesh that reached about her knees. She didn't wear the traditional Nin shoes, and opted for the feminine version with three inch heels. Her headband was worn around her neck with black fabric.

The taller on had brilliant silver hair that seemed to be very silky. She wore black pants that were skin tight down to her knees, where there were small slits that allowed the joint free movement. And a tight fitting black turtle neck that was short sleeved. On her claves were metal plates that were obviously for protective purposes. She wore the traditional Nin shoes (in black) unlike her shorter friend, but with a smaller one inch heel. On her arms were black arm warmers, much like Sasuke's, and her arms were essentially covered in black tattoos. The same could be said for her legs. Her forehead protector was worn on her left thigh, just above her standard black kunai pouch, and was also made with black fabric. Beside her was a large tan mountain lion whose head reached her mid thigh (which considering her height was pretty impressive.)

"Are you two ready?" He asked. The tall one responded rather loudly and with quite a bit of enthusiasm, while the shorter just nodded seriously. "Begin," He jumped out of the way, and the two stood still before lunging even further apart. Neither threw weapons, and neither made any attempt to confuse the other.

"I know your weaknesses, Hikari." The taller cautioned, "I can use it against you." the shorter just smiled sadly, and gave a brief nod. Hebi sighed, and pulled out a kunai while her lion growled and immediately got in the ready position. Hikari mimicked the action. Hebi rushed foreword, kunai in front of her chest, and Hikari did the same while the cat began to approach Hikari from her right. Hikari's long, black bangs blocked her eyes from view, and her hair was thick enough that it kept her eyes invisible to others despite their fast pace. Hebi's silver hair (which impressively reached her butt despite the fact that it was in a high pony tail) was pulled back tight, with only two small strands loose at her temples. Her ice blue eyes with narrow pupils gleamed in the artificial light of the room, and Naruto noted how they were very predatory, and very demoralizing.

Beside him, Hinata activated her Byakugan and let out a small gasp of surprise. Naruto blinked, before looking at her curiously. He shrugged it off when she didn't notice (reply might be a better choice of words) and returned to the fight.

The two kunais clashed, and Naruto marveled at how they seemed to be mirror reflections of each other. They fought with kunais for a limited time (with the cat seemingly watching at the ready from the side lines) before throwing them aside and reaching towards their hips. The only issue was that Hebi had a katana, while Hikari did not. Hikari's face showed nothing though as she suddenly flew backwards as Hebi rushed forewords. Now, Hikari was acting like a shadow. When Hebi moved foreword, she moved back. While the chase continued, Hikari pulled a senbon from her top (from between her breasts) and tossed it at the tall opponent. Not expecting the sudden change, Hebi could only block it with her hand, before pulling it out in an animalistic fashion with her teeth. Hikari frowned, before dashing foreword with her right arm outstretched. As her long black sleeves flew backwards, Naruto spotted her black fingerless gloves with metal backing. She reached out with two fingers, and when she came in contact with Hebi's sword, it shattered immediately under her touch. Hebi hissed, before tossing away the hilt. Naruto noticed the light green hue that surrounded her finger tips now. Beside him, Hinata had let out a louder gasp of shock. Naruto glanced at her before speaking.

"What's up?"

"She…used the Jyuken…" she marveled, though she seemed worried about something.

"You're lucky that was a spare," Hebi murmured, before aiming a punch to Hikari's face. The green hue now surrounded Hikari's entire cheek where the fist landed and was now a very clear dark green. Naruto marveled as the skin was bruised for an instant, before healing. Hebi grinned.

"So, you're being cautious today," She commented, before throwing a punch to her stomach. Hikari's hand enveloped itself in green again, before grabbing the fist and twisting it backwards while pushing it back towards Hebi's wrist. Naruto heard the sickening 'crack' of her wrist breaking and heard Hebi's howl of pain. The cat was about to charge, but Hebi motioned with her free hand and the beast snarled before relaxing. Hikari lifted her free hand, and made several signs that definitely were not seals. Hebi just offered a tight grin.

"S'okay, just trying to win, I know." She grunted, before using her good hand and aiming to land an open hand into her gut in an attempt to push her away. Hikari quickly, as if predicting the move, grabbed that wrist with her free hand and Hebi howled yet again. Red seeped through Hikari's fingers and as she released Hebi, it revealed the wire that was stretched across her palm from wrist to the middle of her middle finger (attached to the glove), and the deep red line that almost wrapped completely around Hebi's small wrist and left a deep and painful looking cut. That was another difference between the two; Hebi was tall and thin in an almost unhealthy looking way while Hikari was shorter and larger (but not fat) with more curves. As the large cat attempted to move, Hebi cried out angrily, "Shomaru! Heel!" The large cat hissed again, before relaxing. Its yellow eyes didn't leave the fight.

Hikari made the same signs again, before jumping away. As she landed she didn't hesitate before gently lapping up the blood from her hand, avoiding the wire. Hebi was not as silent as her, and was cursing up a storm before she quickly grabbed a kunai from her pouch (her face twisted in agony) and tossed it into the air. It span while it came down, and she quickly caught it in her teeth. She then charged the shorter one, but before she could change directions Hikari had cart wheeled to Hebi's left, and while on her palms, she span in a clockwise motion. Her foot connected with the back of Hebi's neck with a loud thud, and the silver haired girl fell foreword heavily. Hikari leaned back onto her feet and straightened. She glanced at Hebi, before looked pointedly at Hayate. Her mouth opened but no sound came out. She frowned before pointing at Hebi as if she wanted him to intervene. He seemed to get the point and briskly walked over to check on the girl. After checking for consciousness, he stood. Shomaru had gracefully slinked over to its master and taken a seat patiently. It looked less then pleased at having to sit by and watch as its master was injured.

"Winner, Kurokaze Hikari!" He announced. The girls lip twitched before she turned and faced the Naruto. She craned her neck up at him and a stray emotion crossed her face. She then ran, before connecting herself to the wall and running up that and vaulting over the bar so she landed directly in front of him, rather close to him. She said nothing, but carefully lifted her hand and brushed away half of her bangs. It revealed a deep purple eye. This eye made Naruto feel as if he had intruded on something important, and it felt like an intruder of her soul. She blinked before a deep smile crossed her face. He saw how her eyes reflected her happiness, and wondered what caused it. She opened her mouth, and a few words escaped.

"You…Chishiogan…?" It sounded like a question, but she frowned at the end. Her eyes enunciated her annoyance. Naruto felt shock run through his system.

"What do you know about the Chishiogan?" he questioned. She pulled out a necklace from under her shirt and pulled it over her neck before handing it to him.

"Keep…yours…heir." She smiled again, and allowed hair to fall back in front of her eyes. She ruffled his hair affectionately before walking away towards the emotionless gaze of her teacher. Kiba, who had previously been talking to Shino, looked puzzled.

"Who was she, Naruto?" he asked, "It doesn't seem like she knows how to speak."

"I don't know," He murmured, before glancing down at the necklace. The chain was long (that was a given, since Hikari had had to pull it out from under her shirt, which was rather low cut) and silver. The pendant gleamed slightly in the light, drawing his attention it. It was a spiral, with the middle being a green emerald. He hesitantly turned it over, where he spotted an engraving.

'Whirlpool.'

He looked up and saw Hikari staring at him deeply while her partner was gently carried out of the room with her beast slinking beside the medics gracefully. He noticed that around Hikari's neck was a sliver chain which held a similar pendant, but with citrine in place of the emerald. Naruto felt a chill go down his spine, before breaking eye contact and instead turning to Hinata. "Hey, Hinata-chan?"

"H-Hai?" she timidly responded.

"You gasped several times during the fight," Naruto explained, "Why?"

"A-anou…that girl…" she lowered her breath and only Kiba, Shino, Naruto and Kurenai could hear her, "she used the Sharingan."

"Nani!?" Kiba asked loudly, before leaning foreword and looking closely at the Kurokaze. Hikari remained impassive as she stood beside her remaining partner and glued her eyes (seemingly) to the screen where the next fight would be announced. The five watched the screen shuffle through names (Naruto managing to catch his flash by a few times, along with Sasuke's) before stopping.

"The next fight: Uchiha Sasuke versus Akado Yoroi," Hayate announced, before coughing into his fist, and the two fighters took the break in his speech to arrive in the middle of the arena. As the two moved, Sakura made her way over to Naruto with worry her main emotion. She was oddly silent as she held her hands in front of her, and soon Kakashi (after sharing a quiet exchange with Sasuke) followed her over. Along with Kakashi came team Gai.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei! Bushy-brows!" Naruto said happily, before returning to the fight with all seriousness. Kakashi simply said his usual greeting before copying the blond and turning to the arena. Lee took his spot on Naruto's left and in turn kept Hinata one space away from him. Neji, Tenten, and Gai stood on Kakashi's other side.

"Kakashi-sensei…will Sasuke-kun be alright?" Sakura asked carefully. Kakashi smiled at her before patting her shoulder in a reassuring manner.

"I'll step in if something happens," he said before dropping his hand back down to his side.

"Now, please begin." Hayate said from his position in the center of the arena, before leaping out of the way.

"Are you ready?" Yoroi asked, forming a seal in front of his face.

"Yeah," Sasuke muttered as he got into a crouched position. Yoroi lowered his hands, and one was covered in chakra while he fished for shuriken with the other. He then dashed foreword and tossed the four shuriken towards the Uchiha. Sasuke acted quickly, taking a kunai and deflecting all four shuriken with one strained movement and sending three of the shuriken towards Yoroi. As the shuriken rushed towards Yoroi pain laced through Sasuke's neck and caused him to tumble foreword and land awkwardly on his side. He glanced up and barely had time to roll out of the way of Yoroi's oncoming fist which shattered the ground.

Sasuke acted quickly and hooked his left foot around his wrist and using his right foot to push Yoroi over. Yoroi fell on his back, landing roughly on the floor with Sasuke's left leg pressed tightly against his neck and his right leg was wrapped around Yoroi's right arm. Yoroi quickly grasped the collar of Sasuke's shirt with a glowing hand, Sasuke's body began to tremble as he tried to keep hold on Yoroi's arm. Before he could react, Yoroi jerked up his arm only to bring it down on Sasuke's chest. Blood spurted forth from the Uchiha's mouth and his body jerked upwards and in turn released his opponent.

Yoroi quickly pushed up, sending Sasuke's left leg towards the side and a bit further then comfortable. Sasuke groaned in pain as Yoroi crouched a bit away from him before charging.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried, alerting the Uchiha. Sasuke quickly leaned up only to have Yoroi's open hand connect with his forehead. His hands snapped upwards to grab Yoroi's arm, only for his body to weaken and loosen its hold and drop with a thunk to the floor. Yoroi chuckled and kept his hand firmly on Sasuke's head.

"You…my chakra," Sasuke managed to get out and Yoroi grinned (the expression given away by the slight crease in his eyebrows).

"So you finally noticed," He asked, Sasuke felt horror rush through his system as he tried to think of something. First things first: He needed to get the older man off of him. HE forced his leg out, kicking Yoroi away with a grunt. He quickly stood and his mind began to work again. 'I need to keep him away from me so I don't use any more chakra…and he's going to try and keep this a close contact fight…what can I do?'

From the upper level, Naruto's mind was racing. Sasuke had to get up! How else would he get to fight him!? Naruto glanced over and saw Sakura looking away to the side with her eyes clenched shut. His grip on the rails tightened, and he decided to just not think about it before he spoke.

"Sasuke!!" Naruto yelled angrily, "Are you really Uchiha Sasuke? Is this the best you can do!?" The Uchiha's head snapped up and looked at the Uzumaki with shock, when an idea came to him. Yoroi took the time to race foreword with a chakra laced hand.

"You don't have time for sight-seeing!" He yelled. Everyone felt as if time had slowed as the Akado came up on the Uchiha, who was still lying on the floor. Then, Sasuke gathered his strength and slammed his foot into Yoroi's jaw. He then bounced upwards and ended up behind Yoroi. Lee started in recognition, while Gai's eyes also widened.

"This is where I'm going to be original," He said. He smirked, "Take this." His body didn't agree, though, as the curse mark began to spread on his neck and the muscles in his arm spasmed. Blood spurted from his mouth. All those aware of the mark stiffened as prepared to intervene, before Sasuke began to fight it. His mind flashed to Sakura as she pleaded him to stop and to just drop out of the exam, and Naruto as he told him to stop acting cool. He clenched his fist tightly. 'I can't let this thing control me!' he thought with conviction, and then, the seal halted before slowly retreating back into its original form. Sasuke smirked in triumph before saying, "Here it comes."

He grasped the back of Yoroi's shirt, and then twisted him in a clockwise direction while he moved in a counter clockwise motion. His leg moved to connect with Yoroi's side only to have him block the leg with his arm.

"Heh…not enough," he taunted, but Sasuke twisted in the opposite direction and this time his foot connected with Yoroi's side. Sasuke quickly punched him in the gut and as they were no more then three feet from the ground, he twisted again and his foot slammed into his stomach, and caused Yoroi to connect roughly with the ground and spit up blood. Sasuke then skidded along the ground away from Yoroi, and was flipped over onto his stomach with a grunt. Hayate hesitated before approaching Yoroi and checking him out, when he heard scuffling from where Sasuke had landed. He glanced up, and smirked when he saw Sasuke rising to his feet. He stood, and spoke.

"I'm ending the fight here, the winner of the fight, Uchiha Sasuke, has passed the prelims!"

"YES!!!" Naruto yelled, leaning over the bar to get a closer look at Sasuke. From behind him, Kakashi disappeared and reappeared behind Sasuke reading his book.

"Well, good job," He said simply while he mentally noted that Sasuke must have copied dome of Gai's taijutsu in their tangle earlier. The room relaxed slightly (well, most of its occupants) and there was a few moments where their was only the murmurs of the other genin and their sensei's as they commented on the fight. The medic that had finished strapping Yoroi to the gurney then turned to the Uchiha.

"Uchiha Sasuke," He said in a no-nonsense manner, "Let the medical team treat your injuries now."

"You won't be needed." Kakashi intervened swiftly, "I'll take care of him." He then kneeled behind the Uchiha and placed a hand carefully on his shoulder. When he spoke even the Uchiha could barely hear him. "I'm going to take you to the back and seal up that curse."

"Umm, We will now start the next match!" Hayate announced.

"Wait until after the prelims," Sasuke replied, "I want to watch the rest of the fights."

"No!" Kakashi answered immediately, "Don't get so mad. If we don't take care of it now it'll be too late. I won't listen to your selfishness anymore." Sasuke looked at his teacher with wide eyes, before being helped up. The board stopped and said the names 'Aburame Shino VS Tenten. The two were quick to jump into the arena's middle in front of Hayate, who stood with his hands in his pockets as he watched Sasuke being led out of the stadium. He quickly moved his attention to the next fighters.

"Please begin," Hayate said, removing his hands and taking his spot on the sidelines. Shino was the first to speak.

"If you fight here, you will be finished," he cautioned, "Please forfeit." Tenten smirked, before pulling out a scroll.

"If you think I'm going to forfeit to a rookie without even trying, you've got something screwed up in your head," she said with no malice in her voice and in a friendly manner. Shino simply nodded, before Tenten made the first move and jumped back a bit while simultaneously opening her scroll. She bit down on her thumb and ran it down the middle quickly. In a puff of smoke, a Bo staff appeared. She skillfully twirled it in one hand, before charging. Shino skillfully dodged each thrust of the weapon, before grabbing it tightly in his right hand. Small black bugs ran along the staff, not noticed by TenTen, but the kunoichi quickly let go of the staff and jumped back only to use another scroll. When she ran her bloody thumb down this scroll, all sorts of projectiles thrust out towards the bug user.

Shino moved agilely and managed to dodge the weapons, but was caught off guard when Tenten skidded to grab the Bo staff he had discarded and twirl it under his legs. The staff connected with his legs with an audible 'crack' and caused him to fall backwards with a slight grunt. She was up in an instant before his back came in contact with the ground and used the Bo staff to push the Aburame into he air. This moved caused the staff to splinter, and she simply tossed it aside before taking another scroll and more weapons shot towards Shino. To her immense surprise the bugs from before multiplied and formed a cloud around the Aburame that caused the weapons to bounce back and clatter to the ground. She cursed before jumping away only to find herself surrounded by the small bugs.

"What the!?" She cried as the insects crawled up her legs and they covered her body. Shino's bugs gently lowered him to the ground and he stood easily.

"Those are called Destruction Bugs." Shino explained, "They attack their prey in numbers and drain them of their chakra. Surrender if you wish to keep watching the preliminaries." She frowned, and attempted to brush them off of her arms. She growled in annoyance, before grabbing a kunai and charging. She was almost halfway there when she felt the full extent of the insects.

Everyone watched as Tenten dropped to her knees panting as Shino stood a few paces away with his arms outstretched as he called his bugs back to him. Naruto winced in sympathy for the burnet; he would hate to have so many bugs crawling on him. When all the bugs had retreated, Shino looked pointedly at Hayate.

"She is out of charka, and should pass out from exhaustion–" as if to back up his statement, Tenten dropped to her side as she passed out, "any second." The examiner quickly moved to her still body, before calling over the medics who then moved her from the arena.

"What is…Neji!" Lee asked, turning to his partner. He made no signs of acknowledgement besides forming signs and activating the Byakugan. His eyes widened as he observed Shino.

"Amazing." He said, "I can understand summoning bugs, but those bugs are living throughout his body."

"Ah," Gai said wisely, rubbing his chin, "He must be from the bug using clan of Konoha."

"Yes, I have heard of them," Neji agreed, "a clan whose members, at their time of birth, give their body to insects to use as a nest. The clan can freely control the insects and use them as their primary fighting technique. By feeding them chakra, they have established a contract with the bugs."

"So the offspring of that clan," Lee said, "Is him."

"Winner of the fight: Aburame Shino." Hayate declared, before coughing into his fist again. Shino was already on the second level and re-joining his team mates.

"C-congratulations, Shino-kun," Hinata said with a smile.

"Hey, great job," Kiba added.

"Thanks," he responded, "I'm expecting you two to do well too." Naruto watched the exchanged out of the corner of his eyes, before returning to his thoughts. 'I never knew Shino was that strong…'

'Well, looks can be very deceiving. I mean, look at you,' Haku said, and Naruto imagined himself hitting him upside the head. 'Haha, that won't work'.

"Umm…I think we should go to the next match," Hayate said from below.

"Hey!" Kakashi said, suddenly appearing behind his students.

"What do you mean hey!?" Sakura asked, "What about Sasuke-kun? Is he okay?"

"Yes, he's currently sleeping in a hospital bed," their sensei replied. The board began to spin, and Naruto caught several more familiar names, before it halted.

"We will now begin the fourth match." Hayate announced "the next fight: Kurokaze Yuri versus Inuzuka Kiba."

"Yah!" Kiba cried happily, "Looks like we get to go now, eh, Akamaru?" The small dog yipped happily, before the two jumped down into the arena and to the middle. Naruto looked around and saw the last member of the all female team muttering something to Hikari before jumping into the arena and landing in front of Kiba.

She had fiery red hair that framed her face in ringlets and deep forest green eyes that gleamed with fierceness and power. She wore a black foreign top with white clasps (like Tenten) and tight black pants that clung close to her skin and reached her ankles. She wore traditional, black Nin shoes and revealed her white painted toenails. On her right wrist was a black band that matched the black velvet chocker around her neck. On her left wrist was a silver charm bracelet that had ten charms and hung low on her wrist. The one that stood out (to Naruto) was the spiral that was identical to the one he now held in his hand save for the amethyst that shone in place of the other stones.

"Oi! Good luck, Kiba!!" Naruto called, cupping a hand around his mouth. The Inuzuka grinned over his shoulder before facing the Kurokaze and awaiting Hayate's signal. Yuri smiled politely at him, and he returned the gesture with a swift nod.

"You are an Inuzuka?" Yuri asked politely, her voice calm.

"Yeah," he said with a nod, "Though I can't say I know who the Kurokaze's are. Sorry."

"Its fine," She replied, "I am safe to assume that you do not know much of the Yaseineko's either?" He grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah, sorry. I just know what I saw of the first fight and that didn't last too long." He said. Hayate interrupted.

"Are you two ready?" He asked. They both nodded, and Yuri smiled.

"I wish you the best of luck, Kiba-san." Kiba smirked.

"Same here, because you're really gonna need it!" Naruto couldn't help but be amused by the situation. Here was Kiba, a thirteen year old, facing off against someone who looked to be twenty at the least, and saying she would need luck. He had to give her props, though, because she simply smiled at him.

"You do realize I am ten years your senior, right?" She asked, and Kiba blushed slightly but didn't verbally reply.

"Match four, Kurokaze Yuri versus Inuzuka Kiba, Begin!"

-

-

**And that's it!!!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

**NaruHina**

**Chapter Eleven:**

Not a millisecond into the fight, Yuri had grabbed a kunai and slashed at the Inuzuka. He barely avoided it and the metal cut open his jacket instead of him. He cursed slightly, before taking out his own kunai and either paring or blocking her attacks. Yuri smiled before moving in a blur and roundhouse kicking him in the back of the head and sending him to the floor with a thump. He quickly jumped up and away before landing in an feral crouch.

"_Shikyaku no Jutsu!" (Four Legs Technique)_ Kiba yelled as he held the seal out in front of his face. Blue chakra formed around him as he lowered himself to all fours. His nails lengthened considerably, but Yuri didn't seemed very fazed. As Kiba charged her quickly, much faster then before, his mind flashed back to his teams stay in the forest of death.

"_We're almost to the t-tower," Hinata said with her Byakugan activated, "But we'll have to be c-careful…there are a-a lot of shinobi waiting to ambush people…"_

"_What do you think the safest rout is?" Kiba asked as the three came to a halt on a tree branch with his hands jammed into his pockets. "We already made the mistake of running into that sand team, we need to be a bit cautious." _

"_I-I can lead us…the only path remotely clear of enemies passes by the all w-woman team of Sound," she offered, "If we keep q-quiet…maybe we can get pass them…They only seem to be setting up camp…" She looked down to the ground and shuffled her feet slightly._

"_That seems like a logical plan," Shino said, "I'll have some bugs prepared to drain them if they decide to move." Kiba grinned widely and scratched Akamaru's head absently. The three moved forward with Hinata in the front. They ran for about two minutes when she came to a stop and began to whisper._

"_T-They are just ahead…we need to keep really q-quiet if we don't want to be n-noticed…" Hinata cautioned. The three moved slowly, when Kiba's sensitive ears picked up bits and pieces of a conversation._

"_Yuri, I hope…epilepsy…kick in during…" _

"…_too." There was a beat of silence, before the same voice spoke again and this time he could make out all of what she said. "I'll be fine, Hikari-chan. I should be fine for the duration of this test."_

Kiba dodged the fist that Yuri had sent towards his face while he tried to piece together the information. What was epilepsy again? Oh, right, something to do with seizures. Yuri's spun with her leg outstretched and Kiba caught the appendage and tossed her into a nearby wall before crouching again and flicking a soldier pill towards Akamaru, who hurtled into the air and devoured it before landing on Kiba's back. He popped another soldier pill into his own mouth while Akamaru's fur turned a dark red. He quickly flashed though hand seals, before grinning.

"Here we go, Akamaru!" He called encouragingly. Akamaru barked twice, while Kiba grinned in triumph. "_Jūjin Bunshin!" (Man-beast clone)._ Smoke surrounded the two, before revealing two Kibas in stead of Kiba and his pup. Yuri raised an eyebrow before smiling slightly.

"The Yaseineko don't have such a convenient technique." She praised, "But I still have the upper hand. I'm good at analyzing attacks, especially those that are feral in nature." Kiba didn't falter, before he tossed smoke bombs towards her, causing purple smoke to fill a small portion of the arena.

"_Gatsūga!" (Dual Piercing fang)_

The two jumped upward before descending towards the woman's scent in a spinning vortex of claws and fangs. His opponent couldn't tell where her opponents where, and was on the receiving end of several painful hits. As a hit connected with her gut, effectively tearing the front bottom half of her shirt, blood spurted from her mouth. She raised her arms in front of her face in attempt to protect it, only to be hit again in the back and force her foreword to the ground. The smoke cleared and Akamaru and Kiba had stopped spinning. Yuri was still for a moment, before pushing herself up with a groan only to halt and collapse again. This time, her body began to shake violently, her arms and legs going into spasms. Kiba blanched and stepped back slightly, unsure what was going on.

"YURI!" A high-pitched voice cried, and everyone looked up to see Hikari straining against her sensei, who had her held tightly against his chest with an emotionless expression. Her mouth was working a mile a minute as she tried to say something, before finally, she managed to speak. "Seizure!!!" That seemed to send the medics into action as they hurried into the arena and quickly and carefully hauled the quaking woman away for treatment. Everyone was silent save for Hikari, who was breathing heavily and crying slightly. Kiba looked extremely confused, and Akamaru returned to his original form before Hayate coughed into his fist.

"Umm…the winner of the fourth match is Inuzuka Kiba!" he announced. Kiba blinked in surprise, before heading towards the stairs to meet up with his team mates. His eyebrow was twitching, slowing his annoyance.

"What the fuck?" he murmured as the board began to spin and he stopped in front of his team, "Why did I have to get the one with a neurological disorder?"

"I don't know if tht's considered luck or not," Naruto murmured curiously, "She seemed strong, but you never know anymore."

"What do you mean?" Kiba asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"Well, some people appear to be strong but in actuality aren't, or vice versa," he said simply with a slight shrug, "You really can't judge people based on their size or their attitude. Like that Hikari girl for example, she looks like she wouldn't be that strong, but she managed to fight against her teammate and not hold back. You know what I mean?"

"I-I think I get it," Hinata said shyly with a small smile. Naruto grinned widely, before he turned his head towards the screen and the next two names appeared. A shiver went down his spine as he recognized both of the names, and fear began to slowly creep into his heart.

"The next match, Rock Lee VS Subaku no Gaara,"

-

There was nothing but silence as the room all watched with sorrowful gazes as the green-clad shinobi was placed carefully onto a stretcher and get hurried out of the room. His sensei watched with a forlorn gaze, with his eternal rival standing behind him. Naruto felt his grip tighten on the pole, before he release the metal and stepped back slightly. It seemed as if the only thing running through his mind was the words of the medic as he told Gai-sensei that Lee would never be able to be a ninja ever again. Naruto picked up the sounds of the electronic board flipping through contestants and he prayed that he wouldn't be called. He was in no shape to fight, he was too shaken up.

'_Real life won't wait for you to prepare yourself,' _Haku cautioned.

"I know," Naruto whispered, and both Hinata and Kiba glanced at him with confusion.

"What?" Kiba asked with confusion. Naruto shook his head slightly and murmured a quick 'nothing' in response. He would feel the tension begin to build inside of him as the names continued to spin, until they stopped and a sigh of relief went through him.

"The sixth match, Subaku no Temari VS Abumi Zaku," The sickly nin announced, before coughing into his fist. The two Nin's met in the arena, and Temari smirked slightly with superiority as she noted Zaku's two bandaged arms.

"Piece of cake," she scoffed lightly, "Why are you still here? You're handicapped."

"Shut up," Zaku said angrily and he began to move his arm slightly, shaking with exertion, "I only need one arm to defeat a broad like you!" Temari's eyes flamed slightly, before turning towards the examiner.

"You! Can we start already?" she snapped. Hayate raised an eyebrow before coughing into his fist again.

"Begin!" He said and leaped out of the way. Temari stood with perfect posture (amazing due to the large fan on her back) and with a hand on her hip. Zaku grinned slightly and raised his arm first thing.

"Zankuuha!" He called, and as it always did, chakra forced itself out of the cylinders in his hand and went hurtling towards the Suna nin. As the attack seemed to connect with the blond, it was repelled by a gust of wind that sent the attack in the opposite direction, or in other words, directly towards Zaku. He was sent back with a grunt and he landed against the wall with another, louder grunt. He closed his eyes for a split second of pain, and that was all Temari needed to charge and send the butt of her fan into his gut with amazing force. Blood spurted from his mouth and his eyes widened, before he fell limp against the large weapon. Temari tossed him to the side, and sent his body rolling a good twenty feet away. There was a few beats of silence where Temari stood with a confidant smirk leaning on her fan in a relaxed positions. When Zaku didn't move anymore, Hayate neared him with a bored expression and checked his vitals.

"Winner of the sixth match: Subaku no Temari." He said simply and the medics filed out into the arena to tae Zaku back to the infirmary. Temari lifted her chin slightly before making her was to the stands with a confidant smirk. Naruto raised an eyebrow and glanced at Hinata.

"That was a very short match," he said before chuckling, "She's just luck Sasuke beat him up so bad."

"S-she would have won any way," Hinata said slowly as she looked down towards her feat with her finger tips pressing together, "their attacks naturally clashed, and she could have beaten him quickly either way. H-he was very ill-prepared and too cocky." Naruto gave a soft 'huh' before responding

"Yeah, I guess you're right, Hinata-chan!" He said with a large grin, "I need to think like you more often!" A blush bloomed across her face before she offered a timid smile.

"Th-thank you, Naruto-kun," she said softly, her eyes looking up at him timidly. Naruto turned back to the arena to see Hayate and Anko conversing quietly while looking over at the Konoha Nin's whom Naruto had never met. Naruto glanced over at them and saw that Hikari's team was standing nearby, and Hebi was back from the infirmary. She was talking swiftly with Hikari, who would sign back with her hands in quick motions that some might possibly confuse with hand seals.

'It's sign language,' Haku explained, 'I think she may have a neurological disorder impairing her speech, because she can hear perfectly fine from what I can tell.'

'wow, that must suck,' Naruto responded before he saw Hayate and Anko separate and while Anko returned to her spot in the stands Hayate turned to the crowd.

"Ahem, we're going to have to have a brief intermission, so please be patient," he coughed and ignored some of the protests before removing himself from the arena and up to where The Hokage, Ibiki, and Anko were standing.

"What's that about?" Kiba asked loudly, standing in a relaxed position with his arms crossed over his chest. He scanned his eyes over the other genin with slight disinterest, "I don't see anything out of the ordinary." Naruto shrugged slightly, turned away from the arena, when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He jolted slightly before turning and seeing Hebi towering over him, and Hikari standing next to her impassively.

"We have some information you might find useful," Hebi said quickly in a soft whisper. Kurenai came closer to her students and listened quietly, while the others tuned in as well.

"What do you mean?" Kiba asked hesitantly while his loyalty started to kick in, "what dose it have to do with Naruto?" Hebi glared at him.

"I believe this is a conversation between me, Hikari, and Naruto-san. You would do wise to step away, oh my god is sensei eating a cookie?!" she was no longer paying attention to the group, and instead was paying attention to her sensei, who had a cookie in his hand and glaring at Hebi. Hikari elbowed her, but it didn't work and Hebi rushed back over to her sensei who in turn gave her the cookie. Hikari looked betrayed, and began to look between her team mate and her sensei with disbelief. Her sensei grinned slightly before turning away and watching the empty arena. Hikari deflated slightly, only to be filled with determination once again and she faced Naruto. She opened her mouth, only to frown when no sound came out. Naruto and the others waited patiently but it seemed to be pointless. She huffed before taking out old leather bound journal and a pen before opening it to the front page and writing something quickly. She handed it to him with her mouth set in a grim line.

"Hide it," she squeaked out, before turning and hurrying back to her sensei who eyed her warily when she came back. Naruto turned his back to the team and started as he saw all of team eight (plus Sakura) looking at him suspiciously.

"What?" he asked, "I don't know what that was about either! Stop looking at me like I know something!"

"What did she write, Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked in a very determined manner.

"How am I supposed to know!" he cried in defense, "I just got it!"

"Then read it!" the pink haired kunoichi essentially screamed into his ear. He winced and Hinata placed a timid hand on the girls shoulder.

"M-Maybe you should give him some time to read it, S-Sakura-chan," she offered shyly, though she seemed more straight-forward then usual. Sakura looked at her with surprise before 'humph'-ing and nodding her head.

"Ok," she agreed out loud. Naruto grinned his thanks to the dark-haired kunoichi before opening the book and reading what she had scribbled down. It read:

Read this journal, Contains important info on the Uzumaki bloodline. Don't give it up to anyone you wouldn't trust with your life. –Hikari K.

Naruto was about to comment on the cryptic tone of the message before hearing Hayate's cough from the arena. He quickly shoved the book into his kunai pouch before turning to the arena, blatantly ignoring the female squad.

"Ahem, if you could pay attention to the board for the next match," Hayate announced, "The preliminaries will now continue."

-

-

**Well, once more I apologize for the wait but my life just seems to have gone down the preverbal toilet. Whoever cares, read on! Haha.**

**1) First, I had to deal with my friends constant mood swings**

**2) I had to work on my original story, which I am very proud of**

**3) I couldn't get motivated**

**4) My grade in math was slipping**

**5) I got grounded**

**6) My best friend, who I love more then words could explain, essentially told me that being my friend was like a roller coaster and she never knew what I was going to do next. She claimed I was like heroin, and she was addicted to me, but she had to quit me. I cried for three straight hours, and never got motivated to write.**

**7) I currently have a demon loose, and is going after me, my ex-best friend (who I still care for), another ex-best friend, and my two other friends. He has already almost succeeded in killing my ex best friend (the one mentioned in number 6) and is threatening the only one I feel remotely close too. As you can tell by now, I've had a rough week.**

**But the good news is that, though I did not save a lot of money by switching to gieco, but my grade in math went up a point. (To a 71. not great, but I'm happy)**

**NOTE: If you haven't gathered already, it's likely that I won't be able to update for a while. Sorry.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…

**NaruHina**

**Chapter Twelve**

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_Nara Shikamaru VS Tsuchi Kin_

"What a drag," Shikamaru murmured from his spot in the balcony. Asuma gave him a pat on the shoulder before Shikamaru began to head towards the stairs.

"This is gonna take forever!" Kiba complained with a frown, and Naruto felt a plan formulate in his mind. To get to the stairway, he would have to walk past both team Gai, team eight, and the present portion of team seven. Naruto gave a quiet laugh before waiting patiently. As suspected Shikamaru walked past them and Naruto took the chance. Appearing behind the Nara, he pushed him to the rail and sent him over the edge. Shikamaru waved his arms in surprise before he landed awkwardly on the ground.

"What did you do that for Naruto?!" Sakura asked as she looked over the railing at the slowly rising Shikamaru.

"It was going to take forever for him to get down there, so I decided to give him a hand," he explained, while Shikamaru looked up at the Uzumaki and glared. Naruto just smiled innocently in return.

"Good one, Naruto!" Kiba complemented through his laughter. Naruto ginned before turning his attention to the arena, where Kin looked less then happy.

"What took you so long?" she asked angrily.

"…I have to fight against a girl?" Shikamaru asked with a frown, "…this is going to be troublesome…" Kin glared at him while Hayate coughed into his fist.

"The Seventh match, Nara Shikamaru VS Tsuchi Kin, commence!"

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"Well, that was a bit anticlimactic," Naruto said as he watched Shikamaru knock Kin out by hitting her head on the wall after possessing her with his shadow possession jutsu. Kiba nodded.

"You can say that again" he agreed. As Shikamaru walked past them Kiba punched him in the shoulder. "Good job, yah lazy bastard!"

"…troublesome," the Nara sighed before continuing past the group.

"I hope I get to fight soon," Naruto said with a frown, "I'm starting to get anxious. Make's me wish I had gone first."

"I-I'm sure you'll be able to fight soon, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata said shyly with a light blush on her cheeks. Naruto turned and smiled at her.

'_Hinata-chan sure is cute when she blushes, don't you think, Naruto-kun?'_

"N-N-Nani!?" Naruto yelled with wide eyes, stumbling back a bit. Everyone turned their attention to him. He laughed nervously before coming up with an excuse, "Haha, I scared myself. Just…ignore me." he blushed before turning his back to the arena and staring at his feet.

"N-Naruto-kun? Are you okay?" Hinata asked shyly, her index fingers pressing together nervously. Naruto grinned, still blushing, before nodding.

"Y-Yeah, just….got surprised. Haha…ha," He buried his face into his hands with a groan. 'Dammit, Haku! I swear to god, if you do something like that again I'll…I'll…Ignore you!"

'_Because that will really work on me,' _Haku said sarcastically.

"Oi, Naruto, look at the board!" Kiba said with a grin. He did so and grinned with relief, only to stare at the board with confusion a millisecond later.

_Uzumaki Naruto VS Uzumaki __Pikku__ Arren_

"N-Nani?" he whispered, and he could hear the female squad all voice their surprise. He then heard more commotion from the other side of the arena, and People looked towards it to see it was coming from the final Konoha team. The one caught making the commotion was a man with an dangerous looking build, his hair was dark brown, matched with two dark blue eyes. He was grinning and patting his only female partner on the back. She had snow white skin, paired with very light blue eyes. Her hair was completely blonde. The final member of the team was completely silent, he had darkish skin, matched with black hair. His eyes seemed to be a very dark green.

"Wish me luck would ya, E!" The brown haired Shinobi said happily. And with a soft smile, the woman granted his request before adding something the others didn't catch. But 'Arren' defiantly did, as he laughed, launching himself of the platform as he did so. The Shinobi did a flashy somersault before landing in the arena, and it seemed that this guy liked to show off. Naruto blinked before turning and facing Hinata, pulling the leather bound journal from his pocket.

"Here." He said with a tight smile, "Look after this for me." He then put on the spiral necklace, shortening the length by overlapping the chain. He was completely serious as he jumped over the bar and made his way to the center of the arena and coming face to face with the fellow Uzumaki.

"Hey." The Pikku said, still grinning, as he slid into a strange battle stance. "You ready to fight?"

Naruto said nothing for a while, studying his opponent. After about a minute he asked. "What's with that battle stance?"

"It's the Pikku Ryuu." The brown haired Shinobi replied swiftly, the blonde haired Shinobi blinked.

"You mean, Pikku Tatsu?" He said in confusion, not knowing he was voicing the thoughts of everybody else his age.

_Smack! _Everybody was taken by surprise at the speed Arren's hand came up… to his face.

"Why does everybody assume it's Tatsu?" He asked before taking his hand away. "When I say Pikku Ryuu, I mean Pikku Ougi"

"Oh." Was the only response Naruto could come up with, before shaking his head.

'_Come on Naruto-kun, you've got to get focused!' _Haku said to Naruto, sounding quite worried, but before the Uzumaki could centre his thoughts, Hayate spoke up.

"Are you two ready?" The sick Shinobi asked.

"Born it." Was the Pikku's reply, while the orange-clad Shinobi just replied

"…yeah, sure," Hayate looked at him for a moment before nodding.

"Match eight, begin!"

With frightening speed, Arren launched his first attack against Naruto – a flying round kick. It was only because of Haku screaming at him to duck that stopped him from getting hit, only to get knocked back when the brown haired Shinobi twisted in mid air, and delivered a powerful back kick right into Naruto's stomach.

The blonde haired ninja staggered backwards, winded by the attack. Instead of pressing the advantage, the Pikku jumped back to allow the orange orange-clad Shinobi to recover.

"It might be a good idea to pay attention to the fight you know" Arren said, folding his arms, looking like a stern teacher, though the effect was ruined by his grin. Naruto just murmured a quiet 'yeah' before attempting to get his head back in the game. He took out a kunai before charging the fellow Uzumaki.

The Pikku seemed to have a hard time dodging the blows, but when he dodged a stab, he grabbed the orange-clad Shinobi's arm and neatly flipped him over his shoulder. Then Naruto realized that he was holding back.

"And here I thought you might actually give me a challenge." The brown haired Shinobi said, sounding disappointed, as Naruto stepped back. Growling slightly, he moved back a few spaces and started to concentrate on Haku's 'gift'

'_Do you really want to do this so early into the fight?' _Haku asked, '_We don't know the side effects of it yet…and with Kyuubi now awake he might find a way to get out.'_

"Don't assume you know what I'm doing Haku." The orange-clad Shinobi growled as the air moistened. Slowly, ice needles formed around Naruto. Once enough where formed, Naruto launched them at he Pikku. Who just dodged them by diving to the side, with a swift roll, he was back on his feet.

"Sorry about taking so long," Naruto said with a grin, "but now I'm get serious; you are _so _screwed." At that, the Pikku laughed.

"We'll see about that!" He said, before he charged at the orange-clad Shinobi. Swiftly, Naruto formed a thin, but strong shield to block Arren's attack. The brown haired Shinobi twisted around the shield and launched another roundhouse kick. Another wall of ice formed, blocked the attack, then melted again, but not before the Pikku used it to launch himself away from Naruto.

"Your pretty good." Arren commented, before quietly muttering to himself, "I might have to take things up a notch to see how far this goes" But as he spoke, Naruto formed the Ram seal. Only a few people in the stadium guessed what Naruto was about to do correctly, and they all braced for impact.

"Oh, no," Kakashi murmured before placing a hand over his face, "I can't watch."

"What do you mean?" Kurenai asked curiously.

"You'll see," he said, and on cue Naruto grinned before shouting out,

"_Oiroke no jutsu!" (Sexy Technique)_

Silence filled the arena, mostly from shock, as Naruto transformed into the familiar form of the blond haired woman with just-right proportions and as bare as the day she was born (or in this case, created).

"N-NANI!?" Several people in the crowd cried. Sakura was glaring at him with angry eyes, Hinata was blushing, Shikamaru, Shino, Chouji, and Ino all looked disappointed, while Kiba whooped loudly.

"Nice one, Naruto!" he yelled, only for Kurenai to whack him on the back of the head.

"Kiba!" she scolded.

"Sorry, Kurenai-sensei…" he murmured solemnly.

The only people in the arena who hadn't reacted at all where Arren and his teammates. The Pikku just launched his second flying round kick, which Naruto dodged, dispelling the henge. Just like before, the brown-haired Shinobi, twisted round to launch a back kick. However, the orange-clad Shinobi knew it was coming, and successfully dodged it to, and countered with a punch, which Arren deflected with his arm before he jumped backwards.

"Well, seems like I'll have to take things up a bit." A ripple of shock swept through the arena. Nobody guessed that Arren had been holding back. Arren grinned, before his chakra (which appeared to be an odd green color) seemed to solidify, shifting into thin metal plates.

"No way… How is that even possible?" Sakura asked, watching the fight intently.

"Now I can go a lot higher on the offense." Arren said with a grin, before charging forwards at increased speed. Naruto had no time to react before the Pikku's fist slammed into his stomach, sending him rocketing into the wall. "Oh, and now I'm going all out on my speed as well." The brown-haired shinobi added as an after thought.

"Thanks for the warning." Naruto muttered sarcastically, before Haku piped up.

'_Use it.' _He pushed. Naruto started, and barely avoided getting hit in the face.

"Nani? But you just said-"

'_I don't care what I said, this is what I'm saying __now__.' _Naruto grumbled slightly before nodding and moving through a series of hand signs. "_Makyō Hoshyō!" (Demonic Ice Crystal Mirrors) _All of team seven had a sense o déjà vu when twenty-one ice mirrors formed around Arren, and Naruto grinned slightly. Arren looked at each mirror with raised eyebrow.

"That's pretty neat," he complemented, "but I don't really see the point in it if you're out there and I'm in here."

"_That's because I'm in here."_

"Huh?" Arren asked before a figure began to form inside of the mirror. It was a feminine looking shinobi with long brown hair kept up in a bun, and dark brown eyes. He was garbed in a heavy outfit that would most likely be worn in areas such as Kirigakure, or Yukigakure due to their cold climates. Arren grinned,

"Lets see if I can smash one of those mirrors at this level."

While both Naruto and Haku remained calm (and Naruto a bit cocky), the Pikku blurred forwards and smashed his fist into the mirror where Haku was, creating a web of cracks. However, Haku was no longer there and was instead in the top mirror to avoid the attack. Though the mirror was badly damaged, it easily began to repair itself.

"_I don't know who you are, but you have fought well. Rest assured, I will make this swift and painless." _Hake said as _h_e raised his hand, senbon at the ready, only for a whisper of demonic laughter to echo around within the mirrors. The only people who could hear the voice were Arren, Naruto, Haku, Kiba, the Hokage, and the Jounin sensei's.

"**How would you like an extra hand, then, gaki?"**

"Shimatta!" Naruto cursed loudly, "Get back in your cage!"

A cackle followed the order, before very faint wisps of demonic chakra began to swirl around within the mirrors. Two mirrors shuddered slightly before being tainted with a red hue, and then one eye in each appeared. It gazed hungrily at Arren.

"**So, another Uzumaki." **He said, **"What a surprise. Can't say it's pleasant, but…" **there was a pause before Kyuubi's eyes narrowed. They then widened in surprise and his laughter filled the mirrors. **"Genjutsu. Well, well, what a surprise. I think that I'll give the gaki a hand, now, and get him out of the fight early." **His image faded, and then Naruto let out a sigh of relief as his very faint presence faded. The relief left, though, when he could feel the fox's chakra bubbling up inside of him like a geyser prepared to erupt.

"_Naruto!" _Haku called. Naruto gagged slightly before he coughed and blood splattered out of his mouth and onto the floor. He clutched his gut with his eyes screwed shut, and a large chakra pulse left his body. Red chakra sped through the air before shattering all of the mirrors and shot towards Arren, but just before it hit, a faint yellowish grey barrier appeared, something that only Haku saw. The red chakra slammed into the barrier, sending him flying back towards the arena wall. The pulse continued, though now with less force, into the balcony where everyone somehow kept themselves rooted to the spot, either by hanging onto the railing or focusing chakra into their feet. The blast then faded, and silence filled the room.

Before any one could comment on the odd pulse, several ANBU were surrounding the rest of Arren's team and Anko, Hayate, Kakashi, and Gai were surrounding Arren, who had now radically changed: a masked was coving most of his face, and his build was a lot more like a civilian. His female teammate now had dark skin, with black hair. The third member of the team had just vanished completely.

"Damn fox doesn't let anyone have any fun." Arren whined, shocking the few who heard. "Oh well, guess I'll just have to go. Ja!" The three supposed Konoha Shinobi vanished. Silence resumed for a split second before Anko tossed her kunai at the wall.

"God dammit!" she yelled angrily. Naruto blinked, completely surprised.

'_I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, I told you to use it and I didn't think, I was just trying to help you win, and then he got out!'_

"It's ok, Haku," he murmured, still clutching his gut while using his free hand to wiped off his chin, "That hurt like a—"

"Winner of the eight match, Uzumaki Naruto!" Hayate announced. The ANBU had disappeared, presumably to search for the nin, while the others stood by the crater in the wall where Arren had hit talking quietly amongst themselves. Naruto blinked, and only offered a weak grin before making his way to the stairway leading to the balcony. He reached his old spot and saw almost everyone staring at him, including team Gai. Kiba and Hinata were the only ones that seemed to treat him warmly.

"Good fight, Naruto," Kiba congratulated, and he let his eyes sweep over the others as if he were daring them to comment on the odd turn of events.

"Thanks," Naruto said half-heartedly, and he closed his eyes to think when a soft tug on the hem of his jacket caused him to open them again. He was greeted by the sight of Hinata standing there with a blush and a shy smile.

"H-here is your book, N-Naruto-kun," she said, before holding out the book that had been kept close to her chest protectively. Naruto grinned, before slipping down and setting on the ground.

"Thank you, Hinata-chan," he said. Hinata timidly kneeled beside him and handed him a small bottle of medicine.

"I-I don't know if you need it or not...But I have some medicine. I made it m-myself…" she said shyly. Naruto was about to turn her down, when he realized that Haku would never leave him alone if he did.

"Thanks, Hinata-chan, I'm sure it will come in handy!" He smiled, and to her shock gave her a hug. Her face heated up before awkwardly hugged him back.

"Aww! So Kawaii!!" The two started and fell apart in time to see Hebi and Hikari staring at them with huge smiles. Though it was Hebi that had spoken, Hikari had also 'Awwed' along with her. Naruto felt his face explode in heat, and Hinata was barely able to stay conscious. But of course, Hebi didn't let it drop, "That must be why he asked her to hold the book for him: Because they're dating!!"

"Awww!" Hikari cooed, and the two hugged each other and squealed. Naruto glanced at Hinata from the corner of his eyes and saw the she was barely conscious. He turned back to the two, about to glare, when Hikari lifted her bangs out her face and winked. She signed something to Hebi, who then spoke for her.

"She say's you have good taste!!" she translated. By now everyone in the arena was paying attention to them, save for Hayate who seemed to be the only one interested in the board as it span through the names. Naruto offered Hinata a shy smile.

"Ah…sorry, Hinata-chan," he said. The heiress nodded in a dazed manner before glancing towards the board. She froze, and her blush faded. Naruto noticed and looked towards the board as well:

_Hyuuga Hinata VS Hyuuga Neji_

"Hinata," Kiba warned, noticing Neji had already moved to his spot in the arena, "Forfeit. He's to strong." Hinata looked at him with wide eyes before looking back at Naruto. She shook her head slowly.

"I-Iie…I…I will fight him," she said softly before standing with a mixture determination and fear. Naruto stood before pulling her into a hug.

"You can do it. I don't know how strong he is but bushy-brows said that he's pretty strong," He offered before pulling away and smiling, "But I think you can give it everything you got. That's all that matters, ne?" Hinata looked up at him with wide eyes, before smiling and nodding.

"Hai!"

-

"…There is no need to suffer any more," Neji said coldly, "Let it go!"

"That is not true, Neji-nii-san," Hinata said from her spot in the arena. She was bleeding from her mouth and had bruises everywhere from Neji's jyuken strikes. She looked at him with determination. Through the whole fight not only Naruto, but the two women from sound had been cheering her on, "Because…I can see it's not me at all…The person suffering from the main branch houses is not me. It's you,"

Neji didn't hesitate as he ran towards her with anger boiling in his veins and spreading throughout his entire body.

"Neji-kun! No! This battle is over!" Hayate called as began to run foreword while Jounin sensei's ran towards him to stop, but they were beaten to it. Ice had formed around his wrists and ankles and connected him to the floor. He stumbled foreword, before straightening back up. The sensei's stood protectively in front of Hinata as Neji continued to glare at them. Naruto had leapt over the railing and appeared beside a beaten Hinata.

"You did good, Hinata," He said. Hinata looked at him and managed to smile only for it to disappear suddenly as she gave an unhealthy lurch. Her eyes widened in a mixture of surprise and pain, before she fell foreword with a gag. Naruto caught her carefully, and Kurenai turned in alarm.

"Hinata!" Naruto held her with a panicked expression, and still Hinata offered him a small smile.

"N-Naruto-kun…" she whispered, "Was I able to change…just a little?" Naruto watched as she slipped into unconsciousness and the medics hurried onto arena, and Naruto offered a sad smile to her unconscious form.

"Yeah…you did." He said softly.

"Hey, you, loser over there," Neji said calmly, and Naruto turned to look at him with a glare. Neji ignored it, "I'd like to tell you two things. If you're a shinobi, stop that pathetic cheering. And second, in the end a looser is a looser. They cannot change!"

Naruto stood angrily and glared at the Hyuuga. He could feel his chakra stirring inside of him, his meaning the kyuubi's, Haku's, and his own, "You wanna test me?" he asked angrily, and the ice that had at one point disappeared from the Hyuuga crept along the ground like a shadow, mimicking Shikamarus' shadow possession and Gaaras' sand. As it rose up to attack him, Neji smirked and landed a jyuken hit at the crystal. It merely cracked before it once again healed itself.

"Didn't you learn anything from my fight?" Naruto asked angrily. He started as a hand landed on his shoulder, and turned to see Kakashi standing there.

"I understand your feelings, Naruto-kun," he said, "But leave the fighting for the matches." Naruto frowned and allowed the ice to disappear before 'tch'-ing angrily. Naruto then heard the commotion behind him.

"Medical team, what are you doing!?" Kurenai asked angrily.

"Sorry!" one of them apologized. It didn't take long for them to load her onto the stretcher, "If we don't hurry she wont last ten minutes!" As they moved, Naruto hurried after them only for Kurenai to stop him.

"They won't let you in while they work," she said softly, but Naruto just looked at her blankly.

"She was there for me when I woke up after the mercenary mission," he said, "and I'm going to be there for her when she wakes up." He then hesitated before looking at Neji, and looking at the blood that had coated his hand after he caught her. He raised his fist and pointed it at Neji.

"I swear of Hinata-chans' blood," He vowed, "That I will defeat you!" he didn't wait around to hear their reply and instead hurried off after the medics.

"Move out of the way, kid," one said in a hurry.

"Where can I wait for Hinata-chan to wake up?" he asked patiently.

"Go out in the lobby, someone will notify you when she can take visitors," he said quickly. Naruto nodded his thanks before changing his direction to where he would be setting for the following days.

-

**ARGH!!**

**OK, so I know this took a while (or at least it felt like a while) but don't worry!! I've got most of the next chapter finished (if not all of it) so you shouldn't have to wait to long. If you want an excuse, here are several!!**

**I'm sick. Seriously, you should have seen me in orchestra. I kept getting off beat, and when I did I thought I wasn't. I was also reeeeally loopy. All day. And yesterday.**

**My ex-friend (Amanda this time) is an idiot. She thinks I'm trying to steal her BF from her( ex-bf now) and she thinks all her friends hate her because of me. She keeps trying to fight and doesn't get that I WANT HER OUT OF MY LIFE!!!! I want to move on with my life!! This should have been over on the 31****st****, but she's dragged it out till today. Its Ridikulus!! (haha, harry potter reference)**

**My beta's been busy and couldn't get to it till recently**

**Nicole and I are friends again, while all my other friends kinda… aren't. Haha. I suck.**

**I've raised my math grade to a 75.96 percent!!!! That means a 76!!!!!!**

**So…while some of those aren't excuses…still. Count them as excuses. ::Thumbs up:: Ja!**

**B.E.N.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

_The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…_

**NaruHina**

**Chapter Thirteen:**

"She will be taking visitors, now," the annoyed nurse said. Naruto's head snapped up with wide eyes.

"Seriously?" he asked. After waiting in the same spot for three days, only getting up to run home and take a shower and to get some food from the vending machines, he was starting to get anxious. The nurse sighed heavily.

"No, I'm just lying," she said sarcastically, before rapping him gently on his forehead with a fist, "Baka! Why would I lie about that?" Naruto grinned and rubbed the back of his head.

"Maa, sorry medic-san," he said, "I guess I was just surprised." The woman shook her head.

"My name is Kane," she said with a slight grin, "Get in there, I'm getting tired of looking at you." She turned and left, shaking her head and still smiling. Naruto grinned before getting up and carefully entering the room. At the sound of the door opening Hinata's head turned to look at him, and she blushed.

"Ohayo, Hinata-chan," Naruto said with a smile.

"O-Ohayo, N-Naruto-kun," she returned, "Wh-What happened with the rest of the p-preliminaries?" Naruto laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, I don't really know. I've been waiting here since you were knocked out," Hinata looked at him with wide eyes.

"Y-you didn't have to….do that f-for me," she said, starting out strong but ending in a whisper. Naruto shook his head.

"Neji-teme was being a big jerk," he said and Hinata's eyes widened at the tone he used, "I swear, Hinata-chan, I'll beat him until he won't be able to walk…Hey, what's wrong?" Hinata had tears building in her eyes. Naruto began to panic, "What did I do? Are you okay!? I'm sorry!"

"I-it's not your fault," she whispered, whipping her tears away with the back of her hand, "I-I'm happy…that you care that much about m-me…N-Naruto-kun. B-but I don't want you to g-get hurt because of m-me." Naruto grinned slightly, before hugging her with one arm.

"Why wouldn't I care?" he asked, "you were always there for me, and I plan on doing the same thing for you!" He looked at her from the corner of his eyes and saw she was looking at him with wide eyes and a blush on her face. She then smiled happily.

"A-Arigato, Naruto-kun,"

-

"Baka! You should have stayed in the arena!"

Naruto winced and nursed his wounded head. After leaving Hinata to meet up with his squad he had been greeted by an annoyed Sakura. Not only was she peeved for him leaving after the fight, but he was actually later then Kakashi. Naruto just offered her a worn smile.

"Yeah, but I knew you would fill me in," he said. Sasuke huffed slightly, while Kakashi sighed.

"You have the first match, Naruto-kun," Kakashi said, "Sakura had to draw for you. You're fighting against Hyuuga Neji," At his name, Naruto's chakra flared a bit and his gaze hardened.

"Couldn't ask for more," he said, cracking his knuckles, "He is SO dead; not literally of course." Kakashi sighed slightly.

"Naruto…"

"I know, I know," the Uzumaki said with a sigh, "Well, what else?"

"We won't have any missions for a month so you can practice," Kakashi began again "I'll be training Sasuke, Naruto I think you have a good idea as to who is training you."

"Not meaning to be disrespectful," Naruto said with his hand raised slightly out of habit from the academy days, "But Haku can only teach me so much." Kakashi was silent before an idea popped into his head. He pulled out his book to earn a groan from his students, "not now, Kakashi-sensei!"

"Look for him," Kakashi said, before showing the picture to Naruto. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"An author?" he asked blandly.

"His name is Jiraiya, he'll be really helpful for your type of fighting," Kakashi explained before snapping the book close. Then as an after thought he added, "Your _oiroke no jutsu _might come in handy, too." Naruto groaned.

"Great, a pervert! I should have guessed if he writes those dirty books!" He threw his hands up with an exasperated sigh. Kakashi chuckled at his student.

"That's all I have to say," Kakashi concluded, "Sasuke, your training starts tomorrow."

"Hai," the squad chorused, before their sensei disappeared. Naruto groaned before turning away from his team.

"I'll catch you later," he said, "I have to go find a sensei. Bah…stupid perverted sensei…"

-

Naruto stared at the Sannin with a slight tick in his eyebrow as he stood on top of his summoned toad, "_you_ are one of the Sannin?" he asked, emphasis on the 'you'.

"Yes!" he said with a grin, "The Legendary Toad Sannin, Jiraiya!!" Naruto blinked before sighing and getting on with what he had come to do.

"Ok, the whole reason I was looking for you," Naruto explained, "Was because my sensei said that for the Chuunin exams I should hunt you down." Jiraiya stared at him, before he started laughing and dispelled the toad.

"Ha, that's rich," the Sannin said, "but look kid, I don't train anymore. I just write." Naruto twitched before glaring and pointing at him.

"Look, Kakashi-sensei wouldn't recommend you unless he thought you could help. I'm not going to leave you alone until you become my sensei!!" Jiraiya blinked.

"Kakashi, eh?" he asked, before relaxing slightly, "Well, if he recommended me he must think you're pretty good. Show me what you got, kid, and maybe I'll take you under my wing." He plopped down onto the floor and rested his hand on his palm. Naruto grinned.

'Ok, Haku, what should I do?" he asked.

'_Why ask me? I almost set the kyuubi free…' _Naruto groaned slightly, causing the Sannin to raise an eyebrow.

"What's wrong, kid?" he asked. Naruto sighed and shook his head.

"Nothing, just hold on for a moment," he murmured, before running through a mental list of techniques. He then sighed and decided on the one that could possibly get him the most bonus points; people did have a thing for bloodline traits.

"I am a carrier of the Chishiogan," he said while mentally praying that it would work. Jiraiya scowled at him.

"Look, if you think that the fact that you have a bloodline automatically signs you up as my student then you have more then a few screws loose in your head," he said angrily. Naruto sighed.

"I guess it was worth a shot," he murmured, before looking Jiraiya straight in the eye, "ok, look, I don't have any major jutsu that I'm known for or that I'm exceptionally good at except for the _kage bunshin_." He admitted, "But I never give up, and I will do whatever you deem appropriate for my training if it means I will become the next Hokage. I will do almost anything to reach that goal."

"How am I supposed to teach you if I don't know what you can do?" Jiraiya asked with a raised eyebrow before getting up with a sigh, "Look, kid, hard work is all fine and dandy but you have to have the ability to back it up."

"Ok, ok!" Naruto said loudly, before he began listing off some of his arsenal to the now amused Sannin. With some inputs from Haku, he managed to tell him all of the jutsu he knew. Jiraiya chuckled at the end of the list.

"You must really want me to be your sensei." He said before sighing, "Look, show me one technique that might make me want to be your sensei." Naruto blanched, before he remembered what Kakashi told him. He grinned before forming the familiar hand seals, and in a small puff of smoke he had transformed into a beautiful nude woman.

"I like you!!" Jiraiya said loudly with wide eyes and a nose bleed. Naruto blinked and managed to keep 'her' cute face. He placed his hands on his now curvy hips and watched with a raised eyebrow.

"What's this jutsu? Huh? Huh?" Naruto raised an eyebrow and scratched the back of 'her' head.

"I call it _Oiroke no jutsu _but…"

"So creative!! Genius!!" Naruto nodded before leaning foreword and giving him his cutest face.

"So?" 'She' asked slowly, "Will you let me be your student, Jiraiya-sama?" He grinned.

"On one condition!" the Sannin agreed. Naruto managed to keep his face innocent, while his thoughts were worried.

"What condition?" she asked with a finger tip in her mouth.

"…you have to stay like that in my presence."

Not two seconds after he spoke his condition did Naruto return to his normal form and glare at the older man.

"Pervert!! That's all you are, a pervert!" Naruto cried in outrage, "What the hell was Kakashi-sensei thinking!?"

"I'm not just a pervert!" Jiraiya defended, before grinning, "I'm a supper pervert." Naruto groaned and Jiraiya laughed, "but seriously kid, I guess I'll help you with your training." Naruto grinned.

"Seriously!?" he asked. Jiraiya nodded and Naruto whooped loudly.

"Ok, now, first on our agenda is water walking…"

"Maa? Water walking?" Naruto asked curiously. Jiraiya nodded.

"It's like tree walking, but on water," he said, "Instead of keeping the chakra focused in a single spot you need to force the chakra out of your soles at a steady rate. Think you can do it?" Naruto nodded.

"No problem!" he said, before moving to the water with determination. He placed his hands in a seal, before focusing his chakra into his feet. He frowned, before stepping into the water only to sink like a rock. He grumbled as he pulled himself out of the water and began to try again, Jiraiya watching him closely. The closest he got was only sinking down to his knees. Finally, he ended up removing his clothes.

"Hey, kid, come here." Jiraiya instructed with a slight wave of his hand. Naruto blinked before doing so, "Focus your chakra."

"Nani? Why?"

"Because I said so," Jiraiya explained, "now do it." Naruto blinked before forming the ram seal and closing his eyes. As he did this Jiraiya looked closely at the now visible seal on his stomach and hummed slightly, immediately noticing the five prong seal placed over the original seal. "Hey, Brat." Naruto blinked and looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Nani?" he asked. Jiraiya smiled kidly.

"Raise your arms like this: Yatta!" he said, raising his arms in example.

"Okay, but why–" he was cut off as Jiraiya slammed his palms into his gut. Naruto crumpled to his knees with a groan.

"Wh-what was that for, pervy sage?" he asked with a groan.

"It was a pressure point that relaxes you," Jiraiya explained as he kneeled beside him. Naruto looked up and glared at him and snorted.

"Liar. I know a thing or too about pressure points." He said. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

"And how do you know this?" he asked curiously. Naruto sighed before getting up.

"Well, it started when I went on a mission in wave…"

-

"Huh," Jiraiya said as he took in Naruto's story, "So…you basically have an extra soul floating around somewhere in your body and it talks to you." Naruto blinked.

"Well…yeah." He agreed, "So, you gonna tell me what that really was all about?"

"Hmm…Nope," Jiraiya said with a shake of his head, "S-class secret." Naruto's eyes widened before he smirked.

"If it has to do with Kyuubi, then I know," he said and Jiraiya started slightly.

"How'd you…wait, this is going to evoke another story isn't it?" Naruto nodded and Jiraiya sighed, "Then I don't want to know. But what I did was fix the seal. Someone used an odd seal and placed it over the kyuubi's seal, messing up your chakra flow." Naruto nodded and accepted that answer, "Now, try the exercise again."

-

Naruto groaned before slowly opening his eyes, only to be greeted by a burst of white. He hadn't expected that. He was either expecting to see the sky or of slightly yellow of his ceiling. He moaned slightly when he realized where he was.

"Damn Hospitals," he murmured. He heard a giggle and started as he turned to see Hinata setting in a chair at his bedside, a box of chocolates in her hands. She smiled timidly.

"H-Hey," she whispered, before averting her eyes to her lap and shifting her weight. Naruto blinked before grinning widely.

"Hey," he returned, "What're you doing here?" Hinata looked back up with a humorous smile.

"Y-You were always there for me, and I…I plan on doing the same," she whispered shyly, and Naruto recognized the words from when he had seem her after her fight. He laughed and shook his head.

"You're something else, Hinata-chan," he said and the timid Hyuuga blushed again.

This had been the routine they had formed since the preliminaries. Whenever Naruto finished his training he would go visit Hinata in the hospital, and each time she would protest, saying that he didn't have to come, and he would always respond the way he had the first time.

"Hey, Hinata-chan, what're you doing out of your room?" he asked curiously with his head tilted to the side.

"I-I was released today," she explained with a glad smile, "A-And when I heard you had been checked into the hospital I went down to the gift shop with S-Sakura-san to get you these," she held out the chocolate box shyly and Naruto offered a wide grin. He took it gratefully and opened it quickly before shoving some chocolate into his mouth.

"Arigato, Hina-chan!" He said with a mouthful of chocolate. Hinata blushed and giggled softly, and Naruto grinned weakly as he swallowed, "That has a ring to it, ne?" Hinata tilted her head slightly.

"N-Nani?" she asked curiously.

"Hina-chan," He elaborated, "It has a ring to it. Do you mind if I call you that from now on?" She smiled slightly.

"H-Hai, it does. I-I don't mind." she agreed. Naruto opened his mouth to say something when the door slid open and Shikamaru stepped in with a book in hand. He grinned and offered a wave.

"Yo. So you finally wake up?" he asked with a grin. Naruto blinked.

"How long was I out?" He asked curiously.

"Three days," the Nara said lazily as he leaned against the wall, "I just came by to see Chouji and they said you were here."

"…were his injuries that serious?" Naruto asked. Shikamaru chuckled and shook his head.

"Nah. He ate too much meat after his fight that he hurt his stomach." Naruto grinned before laughing loudly while Hinata offered a quiet giggle.

"That's just like him," Naruto said with a shake of his head. Shikamaru nodded with a wry grin.

"Honestly I came down because I thought you two weren't the type to have girls visit you but I was proven wrong, I see," He motioned his head towards the window, and Naruto turned to see a small vase with a single yellow rose in it. He blinked with surprise.

"Nani? Who is it from?" he asked.

"I-It's from the sound nin, Hikari," Hinata explained softly, "She stopped by y-yesterday. S-She smiled at me before placing it on the window seal, a-and then patted me on the head on the way out." Naruto offered a quiet 'huh' before he noticed the fruit basket in Shikamaru's hand.

"What, did you get me something too?" he asked cheekily. Shikamaru sorted.

"No way; This was for Chouji but the doctors said no food and since I didn't want it to spoil I brought it by here." Naruto frowned childishly.

"For a second I thought you cared," he said before laughing, "Whatever, I don't care." Hinata smiled slightly before standing up.

"Huh? Where're you going?" Naruto asked curiously.

"A-Ano, I need to use the restroom," she stuttered with a blush. Naruto said an awkward 'oh' before allowing her to leave. Shikamaru chuckled at him.

"Smooth move," he said before taking Hinata's seat. Naruto hesitated, before an idea struck him. He grinned widely.

"Hey…we should eat that in front of Chouji." Shikamaru shook his head.

"You're tiring me out…"

-

"_I was born a monster."_

Naruto felt a shiver go down his spine as Gaara's words echoed in his head. It was possibly one of the darkest things he had gone through. He sat on his bed with his hands clasped tightly together, his knuckles turning white.

"Haku?" he asked softly, his own voice hard for him to pick up.

'_Hai?'_

"…will I end up like him?" he asked softly, and fear once more ran down his spine, "…I don't want to end up like him…"

'_Your different from him,'_ Haku said firmly, _'you have precious people, Gaara does not. That alone saved you. Now you can try and save him,'_

"…right," he murmured softly, "of course." He heard Haku let out an exasperated sigh.

'_Look, today is the Chuunin exams. You need to stay focused.'_ Haku encouraged and giving him a mental jolt, _'If you don't hurry up you'll be late.'_

"Right," Naruto murmured again, though with a bit more convection then before, and stood. He moved quickly as he gathered himself, before smiling widely.

"Meh, I'll beat Neji's ass, won't I Haku!?" He asked loudly before heading to the door.

'_I don't see why you try to lie to me when I'm in your head,'_ Naruto didn't respond, and kept up the carefree smile as he made his way through the village and towards the arena, where he was sure he would avenge Hinata. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and his smile disappeared. He was worried, that was given, and he didn't know much about Neji's abilities except for what he remembered from the preliminaries and what he had managed to find out from the library (before being kicked out, of course). He sighed briefly before he decided to take a brief detour to the training ground where Kakashi had decided to take on team seven as his first genin team. Naruto smiled at the memory, only to stop when he spotted Hinata standing in front of one of the large posts. He grinned.

"Oi, Hina-chan, What are you doing here?" He asked and she jumped before turning and smiling shyly.

"O-Ohayo, Naruto-kun," She said softly, her index fingers pressing together timidly, "Aren't you supposed to be down at the arena?" Naruto shrugged.

"Yeah, but I decided to stop by here; this is where Kakashi-sensei officially made us a genin," they lapsed into a brief silence, before Naruto spoke again, "Hey, Your cousin Neji…he's pretty strong, isn't he?" Hinata nodded solemnly.

"Y-Yeah," She answered truthfully, "But I think you could b-beat him, Naruto-kun." He grinned widely and rubbed the back of his head.

"Yeah, I am pretty strong!" He said, but he quickly sobered again. Hinata quickly spoke up again.

"You are," She agreed, "And…and it was because of you that I kept fighting." She blushed and twisted her hands slightly, "When you cheered me on, it…it made me like myself a little b-bit more. And some might not think that…that I changed…but I think I d-did, even just a little." She smiled shyly and didn't meat his gaze, "At least, that's what I think." Naruto's expression sobered, before speaking again.

"To you I might appear strong, but I only act like that because…because I'm frustrated with myself. I feel like a failure half of the time, and it seems that no matter how hard I try sometimes I keep messing everything up, and then I think that I'll always be a failure—"

"No!" Hinata cried loudly, and she quickly crossed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him tightly, her face flushing a brilliant red and her heart pounding heavily in her chest. Naruto stumbled slightly before awkwardly placing a hand on her back. She shook her head and tightened her grasp (mostly to keep herself from collapsing). "I don't like it when you say stuff like th-that," she said, "I'm proud of you, Naruto-kun, and I think that you should be proud of yourself t-too.

"In my eyes, y-you're a proud failure!" She continued, and attempted to keep her tears in, not out of sadness, but because of all the intense feelings that rushed through her, "Wh-when I look at you I get an intense feeling in my heart…b-because you're not perfect. Wh-Whenever you fail, you get back up. That's what true strength is, N-Naruto-kun, and I think that you are an incredibly s-strong person." Naruto allowed his jaw to hang open with surprise for a moment, before he closed it and laughed slightly.

"Thanks, Hina-chan," he said honestly, "I was really depressed this morning…you really helped me." Hinata pulled away shyly and looked down, her fingers pressing together again and her feet shuffling nervously. Naruto watched for a moment before speaking up again.

"In all honesty, I used to think that you were a dark weirdo," he said slowly, and he continued quickly so she wouldn't get upset (he thought she wouldn't hit him, like Sakura would, but he never knew) "But ever since that mission we had together…I decided that I like people like you, and that you're one of my precious people." Hinata's face, which had finally returned to it's normal color, flared up again and she squeaked in surprise. Naruto grinned.

"Hey, you waiting for someone or do you wanna go ahead and head to the arena with me?" He asked casually.

"Yeah, she's waiting for me," came Kiba's haughty voice as he made his way up to the two with a competitive yet friendly grin on his face, "Sorry I'm late. But I see you had some company, eh, Hinata-chan?" She smiled and Naruto's grin widened as he dismissed the subtle hint of disappointment he felt (though he didn't know why).

"Great!" Naruto said loudly, "Let's go!" Hinata smiled at him and followed timidly behind him, Kiba watching from behind and sighing at Naruto's stupidity.

"Baka," he whispered, before yelling, "Oi, wait up!"

-

**DUN DUN DUN!!!!**

**Chapter thirteen….DONE!!!! (oh, and if you need a laugh, just read the stuff below. It makes me laugh reading over it.)**

**OK, I have a bone to pick with some people!!! (well, really a person). This is a review I got from "zzz"**

Wow congrats way to give Naruto EVERYTHING. he gets a bloodline that lets him use up to 3 bloodlines next he gets a detailed book on his bloodline you change up all the fights to give naruto an advantage and then still let people like hinata and lee get slaughtered just to further your own plot you didnt even write out new fights you just basically go this person lost i dont even care about writing a major fight in my story. Good job failure of a writer.

**OK, now back up buster!! Did you just IGNORE half the things in the story and skip to the end??? Who, THE HELL, said that the book was detailed!?! Who said he was even going to use his bloodline!?!?! You don't even know what could happen because of that yet!! I just said that the book had important facts on the bloodline. That does NOT mean detailed, and it does not mean that that is the only thing in the book!! Hell, most of what is in that book doesn't really matter, and the major thing is it explains what really happens when the bloodline is abused!!!!**

**And WTH have you been fucking SMOKING!?!?! Naruto went up against someone who was stronger then Kiba, so he was actually at a disadvantage! If Kyuubi hadn't revealed that there was a genjutsu on the group, Naruto would have lost that fight!! BADLY!!!! That's a disadvantage, unless your from some weird alien planet where 'advantage' actually means 'disadvantage'!!! IDIOT!! **

**Second of all, Hinata and Lee getting beat up is, you know, KIND OF IMPORTANT!!!!! If Lee hadn't been wounded, a shit lode of things would have been different!! It's kind of a major plot point!! And If Hinata hadn't been beaten, then Naruto wouldn't have vowed to defeat Neji and probably wouldn't be as confident during the fight. AND Neji would have never gotten an attitude adjustment. And HELLO!!!! THIS IS FANFICTION!! Of COURSE I want to further my own fucking plot, it's my fucking story!!!!!!!!! Oh, and if you have your own story, why didn't you sign in and say this where I could respond? Pussy.**

**And what were the last three chapters, chopped liver!?!? I mixed up a whole bunch of the fights just to spice it up since I didn't want to write the same fucking thing OVER and get my readers mad at me!!! My readers already said that they would rather me shorten or skip over the things that are just copy's of what happened in the manga. I'm doing what MY readers wanted ME to do. If anyone doesn't want me to do that, I'll waste MY fucking time flipping between the manga and my word document just so you can have YOUR fucking fight scene, and therefore postpone the chapters!! Sure, why don't I go ahead and fail all my classes, I'm SURE that I'll do just fine in life as a fucking cook at Burger King!!!!**

**GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS AND ACTUALLY READ!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**OK, on a softer note, I wouldn't be as angry if they had worded it as constructive criticism, hell, I probably would have listened to what they had to say and apply it in oncoming chapters. But that was just rude, and inconsiderate. I've had enough of this shit already with someone throwing my PERSONAL and PRIVATE problems in my face. I don't need that shit.'**

**Now, on an even softer note, this review really made me laugh and improved my mood after reading that ASSHOLES review. Again, it doesn't have a reply, but it was from 'Math Teacher'.**

Only 76 in Math? BACK TO WORK!

I WANT TO SEE A 82 ON THE NEXT EXAM YOUNG LADY!

NO EXCUSES!

**Ah, the joys of comedy. It made me smile. Here, have a cookie!!!! (but I did bring it from a 71 to a 76 in about a three week timeframe. That's pretty good, I think).**

**So, there!! I was angry! RAWR!!**

**So, next time someone plans on sending in a flame or something along those lines, prepare to get your own five paragraphs on why you are an idiot and how you should take your head, out of your ass.**

**And that's all!!**

**B.E.N.**

**P.S: and that poll on my profile is open again, in case you didn't vote. I need votes, cuz two of them are tied. O__O**


	14. Chapter 14

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

_The Kyuubi has decided that Naruto needs to learn to be more responsible, more careful. He severs his connection with the Jinchuriki. This is a decision that will change Naruto's life forever…_

**NaruHina**

**Chapter Fourteen:**

"Thanks everyone for coming to the Chuunin selection exams!"

The Hokage's voice sounded over the audience and the contestants, loud and clear, and demanding respect. Silence met his announcement, and Sarutobi grinned as he continued.

"We will now start the main tournament matches between the ten contestants who made it through the preliminaries. Please stay, and watch until the end!" Genma turned to the competitors and pulled out a white sheet of paper.

"There's something I'd like to tell you before the matches," he said as he unfolded the paper, revealing the matches and their order, "Look at this. There have been some minor changes to the tournament, so double check to see who your fighting." Naruto was relieved to see he was still fighting Neji. He took in the rest of the matches.

First match: Hyuuga Neji vs. Uzumaki Naruto.  
Second match: Kurokaze Hikari vs. Inuzuka Kiba.  
Third Match: Gaara vs. Uchiha Sasuke.  
Fourth Match: Kankuro vs. Aburame Shino.  
Fifth Match: Temari vs. Nara Shikamaru

"Oi," Naruto asked suddenly, narrowing his eyes, "What happened to that Misumi guy?"

"His body was found three days ago," He replied, as if it were nothing, "He choked on a sushi roll." Naruto grimaced, while in reality he was trying not to laugh. Not that death was a laughing matter or anything, but seriously? A ninja choking on a sushi roll?

"What about Sasuke?" he asked, "What are you going to do?"

"If Sasuke isn't here on time, he will get an automatic loss," Genma replied simply, "Alright, listen up. This is the final test. The arena may be different, but the rules are the same as in the prelims. You fight until one of you dies or acknowledges defeat. If I determine that the fight is over, I'll step in and stop it. Get it?" He moved his eyes over all of the contestants slowly, "Now the first two contestants, Hyuuga Neji and Uzumaki Naruto, will stay down here. The rest of you need to go to the waiting room."

As everyone moved, whispers went through the crowd as people conversed over the outcome of the match. Naruto scanned the crowd and easily spotted Hinata setting awkwardly with TenTen, Sakura, and Ino. She glanced over at the two shinobi on her other side with an odd look, almost as if she were offended, before returning to the match. He moved his attention back to Neji, who smirked.

"…Looks like you have something to say," he said cockily, as if Naruto had said something particularly amusing. The Uzumaki glared, and fisted his hand.

"I told you before," he growled, "You're going down." Neji just activated his Byakugan, and his face remained impassive. Genma allowed his eyes to scan the two, before speaking again.

"Now, the first fight, begin!!" Neji grinned as the proctor left the arena.

"That's what makes this fight so enjoyable," he said cockily, "It'll be fun watching you fall apart when you discover reality."

"Stop your blabbering!" Naruto ground out, "Let's get this over with!" Neji smirked again, as Naruto formed a hand sign.

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_!"

Four other Naruto's popped into existence and quickly brandished their kunai, glaring at Neji. He said nothing, and the four clones dashed forward. Neji smirked, before using the clones heads to flip himself over them, in turn sending them into the ground, before twisting as the two other clones came at him and kicking them out of the way. He landed on all fours, and two clones took the chance and ran at him with their kunai at the ready, but just inches away Neji grasped their wrists and jerked his elbows up to jam into the clones jaws. He turned quickly, and slammed his palms into the clones' stomachs and forcing them away from him. The clones disappeared in their signature puff of smoke, and Naruto glared while Neji just smirked.

"Become Hokage, eh?" The Hyuuga asked, "It's impossible, with that. I can figure it out with these eyes. Talent was decided at your birth. You could say, that everything is decided at your birth."

"Why the hell do you automatically decide things like that!?" Naruto yelled angrily, glaring at him full-force.

"Then…are you saying that anyone could become Hokage like that? Through hard work?" Neji countered with his superior smirk still present on his face, "Only a handful of shinobi are chosen as Hokage." His smirk turned to a glare as he spoke to the blonde, "Look closer at reality! Those that became Hokage are born into that destiny! You don't become it by trying. It is decided by destiny.

"People live within their own unchangeable flow." He continued, and suddenly, he looked oddly melancholy, "The only destiny that we all share is death."

"So what!?" Naruto snapped, "I'm not someone who's good at giving up!!" He formed the seals again, and a small army of clones appeared behind him.

"I'm not stupid," Neji said condescendingly, "I already see through your attack pattern."

"I already told you!! Stop automatically deciding things!!"

The army charged him, and Neji's eyes narrowed as he seamlessly began to avoid all the punches that were thrown at him. Neji grinned as a realization hit him, and he ran through the ambush towards a Naruto in the back, who was doing the least amount of work. He landed a strike in his chest, and smirked.

"Fearing having your points pressed, one body is doing the least amount of attacking. The more you attack the clearer it becomes." He stared blandly at the shinobi, "You're the real one. That's why I told you it was useless."

Blood dripped from Naruto's mouth, before he glanced up and grinned dangerously at the Hyuuga, "That's why I said to stop automatically deciding things."

To many's surprise, the clone disappeared in a puff of smoke, and two Naruto's threw punches towards the Hyuuga.

"YES!!! GO NARUTO!!!!" Kiba yelled as he punched his fist up into the air.

Then, to great surprise, Chakra began to form around Neji and he span as the Naruto's were forced backwards, one of them disappearing in a puff of smoke. Naruto winced before pushing himself up, watching Neji carefully. Neji raised his head and smirked cockily.

"You thought you had won?" he asked in a superior tone, with a raised eyebrow. Silence consumed the crowd, and Naruto glared before cursing and wiping off his cheek. Neji spoke suddenly, catching Naruto by surprise;

"It's over; You are within range of my Hakke…" he said, closing his eyes. Naruto started to move, but it was too late and Neji charged him, "Gentle Fist Style, 64 Hands of Hakke!"

He easily hit Naruto with his hands, counting off the amount of attacks which doubled as each hit made its mark. The force of the 64th hit sent Naruto flying backwards and caused him to roll on the ground unceremoniously, before coming to a stop on his side.

"I have hit 64 points on your body," Neji said cockily, "You can't stand." He laughed softly, as Naruto attempted to push himself up, ending on his knees, "It's painful, isn't it? Realize you're worthlessness already and stay on your knees." His gaze turned cold as he glared at Naruto viciously, "Having dreams come true through hard work is an illusion."

Naruto bit down harshly on his lip as images of his friend, namely Hinata and Lee, flashed through his head. He almost collapsed again; Neji was right when he said the attack had been painful. But for his friends, for Hinata-chan…

Gasps went through the crowd as Naruto stood with an angry glare on his face, all his anger and hatred directed towards the proud Hyuuga before him.

"I told you I'm not good at giving up," he growled, when a fain noice caught his attention. He glanced over, and saw Hinata doubled over in pain, coughing violently into her hand. He focused a bit, and hear something from Sakura, something about her wounds, when an ANBU appeared. Naruto quickly directed his attention back to the fight as Neji spoke.

"…Give up. I have no grudge against you." He said in a bored tone. Naruto's anger flared.

"Well, I do!" he called, and Neji raised an eyebrow.

"What are you talking about?"

"If you're so strong with those 'all-seeing' eyes of yours, then why did you keep mentally attacking Hinata-chan, who was trying so hard?" he spat out angrily, "you had no right to mentally berate her when she was giving it her hardest, and trying so hard to change herself! You're the kind of people that I hate! You kick people while they're down!" he glared venomously, and Neji returned it without a second thought.

"That's none of you're business," he returned in a deathly calm voice.

"Like hell it is!" Naruto spat again, "Hinata-chan is one of my best friends, and she never deserved to be treated like that! Pieces of shit like you who call other people losers," he tightened his fist angrily, "I will never forgive!" Neji was silent for a moment.

"Fine," he said sudden;y, "If you want to go that far, I'll tell you about The Hyuuga's Destiny of Hatred…"

Naruto listened closely as Neji explain everything, from the mark on his forehead to the reasons behind his fathers death. He questioned the sanity of the Hyuuga's frequently, but otherwise waited for him to stop speaking. When he did, he burst.

"I don't know how it felt to loose your dad like that," Naruto said loudly, "But thinking that destiny is decided like that is a huge mistake!" Neji chuckled,

"You're hopeless," he murmured, before suddenly charging him, hitting him in the gut with a Jyuuken strike. Neji straightened and looked at the examiner, "It's over."

Then, as he moved his foot foreword he stumbled. He looked down in disbelief and saw that ice had formed a sort of big iron (1) around his ankle that kept him secured to the ground. Naruto got to his feet and smirked.

"Don't tell me you're running away," he said cockily, "This has barely even started. There is no way that I'll lose to a coward that keeps going on about all that Destiny bullshit."

"An ignorant brat like you shouldn't be lecturing," he snapped angrily, before pointing accusingly at him, "You could never understand what it's like to be burdened with a symbol you could never rid yourself of!!"

Silence consumed the crowd, and in the stands Kiba growled angrily, clenching his fist so hard it bled. Shino placing his hand firmly on his shoulder caused him to move hi grip to the bar, instead of causing himself more harm. Naruto closed his eyes softly, before chuckling angrily, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. He opened his eyes and glared at the Hyuuga.

"You shouldn't talk about things you don't understand," he bit angrily, "Because I know more then could ever understand about being branded. And so what?" He spat on the ground, "Stop acting so cool! You aren't the only one who's special! Hinata has suffered too, and she's part of the stupid main branch!" He felt his anger building as he yelled at the angered Hyuuga, "Trying so hard to become stronger, to be acknowledged, to change herself…Thinking that as she fought you tooth and nail.

"You're the same!" he continued, "Doing that to Hinata-chan, even though the branch family is supposed to protect the main family…the truth is that you're fighting destiny harder then anybody!!" Neji was silent in anger, before relaxing and smirking superiorly.

"You're 64 points are closed," he continued, "How do you expect to fight?" Naruto smirked, and kept back his laughter.

"Surprisingly, I know just the thing," he murmured, before concentrating and forming a seal in front of him.

"Can I ask you a question?" Neji asked, but continued before he got permission, "Why do you go against destiny do much?" Naruto opened his eyes and eyed him coolly.

"Because I was called a looser," he responded, and the ice around Neji's leg faded away, and before Neji could respond, his eyes widened as chakra began to spill from the boy.

"N-No way!" he murmured, watching in barely concealed awe as chakra began to flow through him once more, starting in his stomach and moving out to all of his limbs. As the chakra, only visible to him and the other Hyuuga's in the crowd, finished its round, it seemed to come together in a form that sent chills down his spine. It was the head of a fox, about twice the normal size, and it snapped angrily at the air. The chakra caused fear to roll down the Hyuuga's spine and caused him to jump back slightly in surprise and horror.

"W-who is he?" he murmured in awe.

Then, Naruto smirked as nine faint trails of chakra sprouted from the ground below him, swirling around him angrily; again, only the Hyuuga could see this.

"Here I come."

-

(1) What prisoners wear around their ankles

**A/N: I'm sorry it's so short, but really I feel bad for not updating, especially when I was working on my Harry Potter fic like mad (as some might have noticed). I have more written, but there's a large gap between this and that that I need to write. So, sorry. This is because it's been a month since my last update.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

**Chapter Fifteen:**

"Winner, Uzumaki Naruto!"

There was a hearbeat of silence as Naruto stood proudly, watching Neji's expression as his words sunk in, and then there was the roar of clapping as people cheered him on. Naruto blinked in surprise and looked up to see everyone cheering him on. A warm feeling bubbled up in his chest and he grinned slowly.

"I did it," he whispered softly, he couldn't hear it over the crowd.

"_Good job, Naruto-kun," _Haku said softly. Naruto grinned, before cheering and running out of the arena, soaking up all the cheers and waving happily at everyone.

"Ne, Haku, do you think Hina-chan saw me?" he asked, and Haku's chuckle echoed in his head.

"_I think that she is very proud of you,"_

Naruto kept grinning, before making his way up to where the other contestants stood and took his place beside Shikamaru and Kiba.

"I can't believe you won," Shikamaru said with a sigh, "Now I have a standard to live up to. Troublesome…"

"And now, the next match, Kurokaze Hikari VS Inuzuka Kiba!" The examiner called. Kiba sighed while Hikari remained oblivious and they both entered the arena, Hikari humming joyously and skipping while Kiba eyed her warily. She smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up, before turning her head towards the examiner, cocking her head to the side to show curiosity.

"Second match, Kurokaze Hikari VS Inuzuka Kiba, commence!" He backed away and before Kiba could move, Hikari formed the ram seal and a small surge of chakra was emitted through her eyes. Kiba thought nothing of it and dashed forward and swung his arm outward to land a hit, but she ducked and her arm snaked out and grabbed his wrist, twisting it slightly, and throwing him to the side. He went flying towards the wall, but he twisted in mid air and planted his feet firmly against the wall using chakra.

"_Shikyaku no Jutsu!" _He murmured, and his chakra surrounded him before his nails lengthened to claws and his appearance became overall more wild.

"Akamaru!" he called, and the small dog barked and launched foreword as Kiba tossed him a pill, which he ate eagerly. His fur turned red and stood on end, before Kiba formed his seals, and he became a replica of Kiba. Hikari just giggled, smiling happily, and Kiba frowned. He flipped away from the wall and landed on his feet, and Akamaru seemed to be grinning in excitement. When Hikari made no move to attack, Kiba launched his next attack.

"_Gatsūga!"_

The two began to spin quickly and they launched towards Hikari, who's smile lessned as she began to bend and twist to avoid the hits. She narrowly avoided a hit and she bent backwards, her palms pressed flat against the ground, before she backflipped and regained her stance from before. The hits stopped, and with the opening Hikari lurched forword and berrated the two with punches, bending her body to avoid counter attacks that would be difficult to avoid under normal conditions. Kiba frowned as he dodged a fist. He knew that she was good, and if he wanted to win he would have to end this as quickly as possible. Appearently she had the same thought, because she launched a fist towards his face. He ducked towards the side and used the opening to land a fist in her gut. He was surprised as she easily went flying backwards and she slammed into the opposite wall, blood spurting from her mouth and dribbling down her chin. She couched, before straighteneing and whiping off the blood, holding a glowing green hand to her stomach.

Kiba used the chance, and once again called out, "_Gatsūga!"_

She could barely avpid the hits that came her way, and cried out miore then several times as their sharp claws came in contact with her skin, splitting it open and causing blood to flow from various wounds at an alarmingly fast pace. The attacks finally stopped and she looked worse for wear, but the green glow surrounding her body healed her wounds quickly, and she was back on her feet momentarily. She went through a number of handseals, before grinning.

"_Raiton: Jibashi!" _she whispered, forcing her hands out and sending a wave of electricity towards Kiba and Akamaru. They cursed and attempted to jump out of the way, but the wave connected with his middle and caused him to yell out in pain, forcing him backwards into the arena wall. He collapsed and the wave vanished, showing his jacket torn and his skin burned nastily. Akamaru re-transformed in a puff of smoke, and Hikari turned towards the examiner. After Kiba didn't move for a tense moment, the examiner nodded.

"Winner, Kurokaze Hikari!"

With that said the medics hurried out onto the field and placing Kiba and Akamaru onto a streatcher and making their way back. People clapped loudly, but the noise was no where near as loud as it had been for Naruto's match. Hikari watched the medics leave before making her way back towards the waiting area and standing by the far wall, her expression completely vacant and the green glow surrounding her body.

"Dammit," Naruto murmured to Shikamaru, frowing as he stared into the arena, "I hope Kiba's okay."

"He'll be fine, "Shikamaru said with a sigh, "Where's Sasuke?" Naruto glanced around and bit his lip, before shrugging.

"Who knows?" he asked with a sigh, "We need to hope he gets here, before he get's disqualified." There was a noisy moment as people began to get anxious, and Naruto continued to gnaw on his lip.

"Where is the bastard?" he asked angrily, when the examiner spoke and gained the audiences attention.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! The contestant for the next match hasn't arrived yet! Therefore, we will push this match back and continue on with the next one!"

"What!?" Shikamaru asked angrily, "That makes my match one closer!"

"Kankuro and Aburame Shino, please come down!"

Before either Shino or Kankuro could make it to the arena, Kankuro called out, "I forfeit," causing Shikamaru to groan loudly. Temari glanced at him, before unfolding her fan and using it to glide down into the arena. Shikamaru groaned and leaned against the bar. He opened his mouth to forfeit, when Naruto pushed him, causing him to flip over the bar and land on the ground.

"Go for it, Shikamaru!" Naruto said loudly. Shikamaru groaned from his position on the ground, and Temari frowned.

"How long are you going to lie there!?" she asked angrily. When she got no response, she smirked, "What are you going to give up too?"

"Good luck, Shikamaru!" Naruto said with a grin. Temari frowned impatiently.

"It you won't come, then I will!"

-

A groan filled the pale white room, as Naruto opened his eyes only for them to shut again. This time, he moved slowly, his eyes barely opening as he attempted to find out where he was. The bed was not his own, and the walls to white.

"K…kuso," he whispered hoarsely, before struggling to sit up. He looked to his left and saw an empty chair, and for some reason he was disappointed. It took him a second to realize why, "H-Hinata-chan isn't here," he murmured, mostly to himself. His head was oddly silent, and he felt as if he were missing something very important. He quickly went through what he could remember: He beat the crap out of Neji, Kiba lost his fight against Hikari, Sasuke's match got pushed back, Kankuro forfeited, Shikamaru faced of against Temari and forfeited, Sasuke finally showed up and fought against Gaara…

…"_CHIDORI!"_

"_H-Hikari-san?"_

"_Sakura-chan!"_

"_LET ME FEEL ALIVE!!"_

"_Kid, you have to knock him awake-"_

Naruto breathed in deeply before clutching his head with his hand, and felt bandages. He groaned and attempted to calm the raging head-ache, but it didn't stop. He sat like that for what felt like hours, before setting up and allowing the memory's to flow slowly through his head.

_He was running through the forests with Sakura and Shikamaru. They were on their way to Sasuke and Gaara, the nin-dog Pakkun leading them. There was rustling, and Hebi's tall figure cut them off, a limp body in her hands. Their sound head bands shone in the sunlight, and the trio stopped, prepared for a fight. Hebi's face was unusually grim, and she watched the three with a no-nonsense expression._

"_I'm not here to fight," she said as she tightens her grip on the body, "I'm not getting involved in this. I'm here to give you this." She shifted the body, and Naruto recognized it as Hikari, her hair drenched with blood, causing it to stick to her cheeks. Her eyes were barely open, and she was completely out of it. Her mouth moved randomly, as if she was speaking, but no sound escaped. He realized that she was, in fact, speaking, but it was only soft whispers that they were unable to hear. Hebi cradled Hikari carefully, as if she was a baby, and supported her body weight before letting go of Hikari's feet, and her head lolled back, her hair falling out of her face, but her mouth kept moving. Hebi pulled a scroll from Hikari's kunai holster, and tossed it to Naruto with a hard gaze. He catches it easily before placing it in his own holster._

"_She's dieing," Hebi said blandly, "I'm not a medic nin, and no one will be willing to heal her. She's keeping herself alive so she can speak to you." Hebi kneeled, and sat Hikari on the ground, and the girl just fell onto her back._

"_I thought she couldn't speak," Naruto countered warily. Hebi smiled grimly._

"_So did I," The Yaseineko stands and glanced behind her, "I'm going to Yukigakure. I'm leaving Hikari here; she can't be saved at this point. So I figure why try? She knew that she would die when she agreed to come." Hebi smiled grimly, before she turned and ran off. She wasn't quick enough, and the three spotted the tears that ran down her face. Naruto glanced at the others, before he moved foreword and picked up the surprisingly frail body. He glanced at the others._

"_I'll keep up with you the best I can," he said, "Don't wait up: Sasuke is in danger. I'll catch up if I get behind." The two nodded, and soon the group wass taking off again with Naruto keeping up easily. Hikari's hands grasp the collar of his jacket and she brought her mouth to his ear, her voice soft and Naruto had to strain to hear._

"_Don't take blood," she whispers, "you'll deteriorate." That was the only thing she said that was understandable; the rest was inconsistent babbling that he couldn't comprehend. He easily picked out 'Orochimaru', 'cave', 'Okaa-san', 'Uzumaki', and 'Kurokaze'. It wasn't long until her chakra virtually ran out, and her voice failed her. Her mouth kept moving, but she didn't say anything. They were still moving when Pakkun announced that they were being followed._

"_From behind, two squads with eight," He hesitated, "No, one more, nine men are chasing us."_

"_Already? You've gotta be kidding!" Shikamaru complained._

"_They don't know our exact location, but their closing in fast," Pakkun continued._

"_Shit. If they catch up with us, we're annihilated!" Shikamaru murmured. Hikari began to fidget, her eyes wide and her mouth began to move even quicker, no sound leaving her. After Naruto offered an Ambush, Shikamaru proved his strategic ability and disproved the idea easily (along with managing to insult the four of them). He then gave his idea of using a decoy._

"_But the one that acts as the decoy, will most likely die," he ended, and silence overcame the group. Shikamaru stared straight ahead as he continued, "So who's going to do it? The dog is necessary to track down Sasuke."_

"_I'll do it."_

_The three turn to Naruto, before realizing that though it had come from his position, it was definitely a female that had spoken. Naruto looked down at Hikari with wide eyes as she stared at nothing with a determined gaze._

"_H-Hikari-san," Sakura said, "You can't possibly?"_

"_Me? I'm dead weight," she said, her voice suddenly strong, "I'll do it,"_

"_It won't work," Shikamaru said with a shake of his head, "You're in no condition to fight, and you're a sound nin; how do you expect us to trust you?" She turned her gaze to him, before weakly holding up a finger._

"_Family first," she said firmly, before patting Naruto on the cheek with a lopsided grin, "Though I don't really know you, Naruto-kun," Naruto stared at her with a blank expression. She kept grinning, "Cousins." Naruto eyes widened and he stumbled on a branch a bit, and Hikari then became determined, "Blood. I need blood." She was still weak, he realized, as she began to search through her holster, where she pulled out a vial. She popped off the top, before downing the red substance easily. Naruto did his best to ignore that it was blood. She downed three more vials, before she frowned._

"_All gone," she murmured, "Not enough." Naruto had to admit that she looked much healthier, despite the blood that was still flowing from her head wounds. She easily raised her hand, and pressed the green chakra-engulfed hand to the worst wound and sealed it shut in seconds. She pushed away from Naruto, making him stop on a branch, before taking off toward Shikamaru._

"_Plan?" she asked, stumbling a bit. Shikamaru eyed her warily._

"_I'll accompany you," he said, "One, I don't trust you, and two, if I can keep them still then you can take them out," He stopped and stood on the same branch with Hikari, his gaze hard, "I still don't trust you." He glanced at the others, "You keep going. I'll catch up with you later on." Naruto watched Shikamaru as he turned his back to them and waited._

"_We're counting on you, Shikamaru, Hikari," Naruto said, before looking back at the others, "Come on, lets go."_

Naruto blinked. What happened to Hikari? What about Shikamaru? Were they okay? With a groan, he remembered the rest. He had fought Gaara one-on-one, summoned Gamabunta, and eventually beat Gaara in a fully-transformed state.

"I need a break from all this drama," he murmured angrily.

"I'll say."

He started and turned to see Hinata setting in her usual seat beside him watching him with a tender expression. She smiled, and Naruto felt his muscles relax slightly. He smiled at her, and was surprised he didn't notice her at first. He glanced over and noticed the absence of any sort of flower, unlike the last time he was here. Hinata noticed and frowned, but quickly smiled again when he turned his attention back to her.

"Do you know what happened to Hikari-san?" he asked. Hinata nodded hesitantly.

"Sh-Shikamaru brought in her b-body a few days ago," she whispered, "Sh-she died from over exertion." Naruto felt his breath leave him quickly, and he stared out of the window with a blank expression as his mind tried to comprehend something: he had just lost the only link to his family. Suddenly, his mind began to reel.

"Hina-chan, do you know what they did with that third sound nin?" he asked suddenly, causing her to jump, "the red-headed one that Kiba fought against?" Hinata tilted her head in confusion.

"H-Hai. She's being interrogated by Ibiki," she said softly, and Naruto felt his heart stop for a moment. He suddenly stood, wobbling a bit, and Hinata gasped, "Y-You shouldn't be standing!" she whispered softly, "Y-You'll get hurt!"

"No I won't," He grunted, ignoring the pain as he attempted to gently push Hinata out of the way, "I'm fine." He moved to take a step foreword, but was stopped as Hinata wrapped her arms around him, and held him tightly.

"I won't let you go," she whispered into his stomach, "I won't." Naruto froze awkwardly, and his features softened.

"I'm sorry for worrying you," he murmured softly, "I didn't mean to." She didn't say anything, but pulled away slightly and wiped away her tears, blushing madly.

"I-I'm sorry," she murmured softly. There was silence, before Naruto got back into bed, although he felt fine, and looked over at her expectantly. She hesitated, before taking her seat again and fisting her hands in her lap.

"What happened?" he asked, and Hinata kept her eyes focused on the ground.

"The sand and sound were forced to retreat," she whispered, "…and Orochimaru killed Sarutobi-sama."

And for what felt like the millionth time, the world crashed down around Naruto's ears. He felt his breath leave him suddenly, and tears well up, but he fought them back with a grimace. Hinata stayed quiet and watched him sympathetically, when Naruto turned his attention back to her.

"Do you know where my scrolls and things are?" he asked. She nodded before quickly reaching into the bedside drawer and pulling out his pouch, before handing it to him. He thanked her before opening the pouch, pulling out the scroll that Hebi had tossed him. He quickly opened it and saw elegant writing that looked like it took years of practice.

'_Dear Uzumaki Naruto;_

_If you have not yet read the book I gave you, then this letter might come with some confusing information, but I will explain it as if you already know._

_When I arrived at Konoha, I had no idea that I would meet anyone of my relation. I heard of you, yes, but I did not know much about you. When I saw you during the exams I got very excited because there was a part of my family right in front of me, and I couldn't wait to talk to you, to get to know you. Obviously, that hasn't happened._

_I want to apologize for how sudden this all is. I want you to know that if I had a choice I would have never joined Orochimaru, and I would have tried to find you. Though I am not much older then you, having someone makes hatred that much easier to bear. I wish I could have been more active in you life, but that is something I cannot change now._

_The Chishiogan is powerful, yes, but I hope with all my heart that you do not use it's abilities any more. You WILL die, and no one can stop it. No matter how good of a medic nin you may be (as myself) you will deteriorate until even the best of medics can do nothing to heal you, just prolong the inevitable. Tsunade of the three Sannin would have no hope in fixing you if you were to do that._

_When I arrived in Konoha I was already weak, as you should know, and I was barely hanging on. Seeing you gave me hope that I could maybe do something good with my life before dieing, and I hope I did that. I never want you to go through what I did so I beg of you to tell no one of the Chishiogan._

_If Yuri is alive, it would be in your best interest to speak with her. She may not have the Chishiogan, but she is knowledgeable on the Chishiogan as well as Whirlpool._

_All things that I leave to you are sealed in the bottom of the scroll; please take care, and remember what I have told you._

_Kurokaze Hikari.'_

Naruto silently bit his thumb and ran it along the seal, and in a poof of smoke its contents appeared. It was Hikari's necklace he remembered from the exams, and Yuri's charm bracelet. He frowned and turned them over, and as expected they both read 'Whirlpool' on the back. He bit down on his lip again before pulling the necklace on and tucking it under the gown. He stared at the charm bracelet and tried to think of what to do with it.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked softly, and he had an idea.

"Hey, Hinata-chan," he said slowly, glancing over, "Could you do me a favor?" She tilted her head curiously, and he took that as a sign to continue, holding up the bracelet out towards her, "Can you wear this, so it won't get lost?" She blushed cherry red, before slowly nodding. He smiled and quickly helped it latch around her wrist, where it dangled innocently. He realized that each charm was a representation of the shinobi nations.

"Thank you," he said, glancing up at her with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, "I guess this means Gramps is going to have a funeral soon, huh?" she nodded, still blushing.

"I-It's scheduled for tomorrow," she said, and he nodded, falling back on his bed. She worried on her bottom lip for a moment, before saying shyly, "I'm glad you're okay, Naruto-kun." Naruto smiled at her blandly before staring back at the ceiling. No more was said between them, but the silence managed to sooth his raging emotions.

-

**A/N: **OK, shitty ending and overall shitty chapter. Whoo hoo. ::stares blankly:: I deserve a 'shitty story' award.

Meh…don't take me too seriously right now, I've just been having a bad week.


	16. Chapter 16

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

**Chapter Sixteen:**

Uzumaki Naruto stood silently as he took in the village, his home, for what would be the last time in many years. His disposition was bland, with less emotion in his face then many had seen for years. The long green stone that hung from a black cord around his neck glistened in the sunlight and seemed to warm his chest, make him momentarily forget his worries, his anger. He started to smile.

Then the feel of the cold metallic spiral pressed against his skin reminded him of everything that went wrong, and his smile dissapered.

His necklaces were both important to him: one coming from one of the legendary Sannin, Tsunade herself, after managing to prove to her that he was not worthless. The other came from the last family member he had, that he knew of. Yuri was gone, managed the almost impossible feet of escaping simply because the leaf had been so war torn, so ravaged. She didn't say goodbye, didn't do anything. She just ran, and no one heard head nor tail of her.

Naruto couldn't help but feel himself get angry as he thought of her, the person Hikari said would be able to explain so much. She was family, distant though it was, and wasn't family supposed to look after each other? Care for each other? But what did Naruto know, he had grown up an orphan with silly delusions about life and family.

"_Calm down. Naruto-kun," _Haku's voice echoed in his head – he sounded tired, weary. He sounded like an old man laying on his death bed. He refused to speak to Naruto about the events of the past month, including one Uchiha Sasuke. Naruto clutched at his covered arm, where he could feel the ice cold grip that never seemed to leave him.

After Sandaime's funeral, team seven found themselves ripped to pieces as Sasuke ran off with four sound nin, all strange and only partially human. Some were more obvious then others. He had gathered a team, with Hyuuga Neji, Inuzuka Kiba, Akimichi Chouji, Nara Shikamaru, and in the end Rock Lee. They had fought for so long, almost loosing their lives, only for it to result in failure.

But that was the life of a Shinobi. You risk your life for your country, even if you might fail and loose your life for nothing. When he stumbled into a fifth sound nin, Kimimaru, he thought it was over. He honestly thought he would never save Sasuke. But then Lee appeared and took over, leaving Naruto to chase after the diseased and disturbed Uchiha.

_Sasuke stared at him with emotionless eyes, his hand puncturing his right lung and making breathing fairly difficult, well, actually very difficult. But Naruto didn't allow his pain to show on his face while Haku screamed at him in fear and Sasuke just stared with that haughty smirk that Naruto had never dreamed he would see in this situation._

"_You prevented me from hitting your heart at the last second," Sasuke said softly, his voice mocking, "But that was pointless. I've impaled your right lung." He yanked his arm from Naruto's chest and kept him hovering right above the ground with his other hand. Naruto just stared evenly at him._

"_You can't use your right arm now," he explained, "Even breathing is difficult. You can't even make seals or use that jutsu."_

_Sasuke's eyes glazed as he remembered, and then smirked before wrapping his hand around Naruto's throat, prepared to choke the life from him. Then Naruto smirked slightly as ice began to form over his gaping wound, keeping himself from bleeding to death, but otherwise made no more to stop him from choking._

"_Do it," he taunted, his eyes glistening with betrayal and anger, "Kill me."_

_Then he snatched Sasuke's arm away from him, leaning down as red chakra began to pour from his body, further healing his wounds, but leaving the gaping hole in his chest untouched. Then the red chakra took the shape of a giant fox, glaring hatred down on Sasuke, who looked like he had looked at the devil himself. The ice melted and the hole began to close, and Sasuke felt real fear grip his gut._

"_I won't let you go to Orochimaru," Naruto hissed, prepared to fight, "Even if I have to break your arms and legs!" As the power continued to grow, Sasuke could only ponder on what the hell happened to him, the once friendly blonde. What was he? A Monster?_

"_What…What are you?" Sasuke asked. Naruto stared at him with his haunting red eyes, glowing with sadness and determination._

"_A friend."_

The cold in his arm grew stronger, and timidly he lifted up his sleeve to stare at the spiral that curled up his arm, uneven and broken, burned into his skin. The Kyuubi couldn't heal it. A surge of pain broke through his skull and he clutched it with his unmarred hand, wincing in pain.

"_I'm not trying anything!" _Haku cried out, _"I'm not doing anything! It's not my fault!" _His voice was panicked and nervous, desperate. Naruto soothed him quickly.

"I know," he murmured aloud, "I know you aren't."

_He remembered waking up on Kakashi's back, the battle over and Sasuke either dead or long gone. A small pain was building in his temple, throbbing lightly like a minor headache, "Kakashi-sensei?" he asked, and he sensei glanced over his shoulder at him surprise, "…what about Sasuke?"_

_Kakashi didn't answer as medics began to surround them, each asking about Naruto's condition in a flurry of panic and worry. That was something Naruto was unused to. Then one asked about Sasuke, and Kakashi's silence was more then enough answer for them. Naruto felt his hopes crash to the ground._

"_What's the situation with the other genin?" Kakashi asked, and Naruto listened as the medics explained the dispatch of two other medic teams had found and taken the others to safety._

"_Nara Shikamaru has a minor injury," the medic nin later explained, "Inuzuka Kiba has a deep wound, but there is no threat to his life." Naruto heard the pause in his voice, and fear gripped his heart – Haku was listening attentively in his head, completely silent._

"_Hyuuga Neji and Akimichi Chouji are in critical condition. Currently, their situation is unclear."_

The steady pain in Naruto's head grew again, throbbing against his skull like a baseball thrown with the strength of a giant. Naruto clutched his fingers around his head, barely keeping back tears. For a moment, death seemed like a good alternative to this hell.

"_Don't you dare!" _Haku hissed angrily, _"You're life is so much more important then my existence! I've died once, I could do it again!"_

"But you're such a better person then me, Haku," he murmured, "So much stronger…You'd be much more useful to Konoha."

"_NARUTO! Don't say that!" _In the passed few days, Haku had shown more emotion then he had ever shown in his life. Naruto was now like a brother to him. He only hoped that the feeling was mutual. Naruto gasped out in pain again and a few tears made their way down his face. A hand suddenly clapped down on his shoulder and he nearly collapsed under the weight – he felt so weak. He looked back to see Jiraiya staring at him with sorrow and determination.

"We're postponing our trip," he said in a determined voice, "You're going to see Tsunade. It's been getting worse, hasn't it?"

"I'm fine," Naruto lied, and Jiraiya resisted the urge to smack him across the back of the head. He slowly straightened, and saw Hinata staring at him sadly. He blinked, and she was gone. A mirage. Slowly, he began to follow Jiraiya towards the Hokage tower, where he knew Tsunade would be waiting for them.

"This has happened before," Jiraiya said as they neared the towering building, "Once. It's why this jutsu hasn't been used since, considered forbidden but never officially claimed forbidden."

Naruto was barely listening. His friends were in the street, having been headed to see him off. Now, they watched him walk with worry clear on their faces as he stumbled through the streets, his headache burning like fire. He remember the first time this pain had wrenched through his skull – it was when Jiraiya told him to forget about Sasuke. After he had bravely stood up to the Sannin, claiming he would rather live as a fool.

His eyes had flashed brown, Haku momentarily taking over, before turning back to blue. Then ice seemed to crawl up his arm, against his or Haku's will. Jiraiya had panicked momentarily, before immediately calling for a medic – Tsunade was closest.

The ice faded quickly, leaving the uneven spiral marked on his arm, cold as ice almost all the time. Like those parts of his arm were dead. Then the headache exploded again, like someone was trying to beat their way out of his skull. Haku had began panicking, screaming that he wasn't doing it. It was terrifying. Naruto kept the full idea of what had happened hidden, not allowing the two to oversee his wound or check out his mind.

Now he didn't have a choice in the matter. The headaches have increased in frequency, and in a short three months he got almost three a day, sometimes five. What made it worse was he had isolated himself from his friends fairly well, even Hinata and Sakura. He sighed as he remembered the one time Hinata managed to break from her home and visit him in the hospital.

"_Hello, Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered as she slid into his otherwise empty room. The headache that he had just went through left him tired and cranky, but he did his best to hide that from her. He smiled as he spotted the charm bracelet dangling from her wrist, the charms gently brushing against each other like wind chimes._

"_Hey, Hinata-chan!" He said happily, and Hinata quickly made her way to sit beside his bed, flooding her hands in her lap and watching him with a light blush and smiling eyes. Naruto could barely stand to meet her gaze, so happy when he had failed such an important mission._

"_You look upset," Hinata said softly, barely keeping the stutter out of her voice. Naruto sighed._

"_I failed my mission, Hinata," he murmured, "Sasuke got away." He almost jumped when Hinata gently pressed her hand against his shoulder._

"_You kept your promise," she whispered with a small, happy smile, "You came back alive."_

_For a moment he didn't realize what she said – and then he remembered that before his departure, not only had he promised Sakura to bring Sasuke back alive, but he had also made a promise to Hinata the he would come back alive. The promise never once crossed his mind, only his promise to Sakura…_

_Hinata seemed to notice this in his eyes, because she pulled her hand away quickly, much to quick then he was used to, and tears began to build in her eyes._

"_I-It's alright, I-I'm sure you were busy trying to keep S-Sakura happy," she whispered, tears almost overflowing as she stood, "I'll t-talk to you later, Naruto-san." Before he could say anything, she was out the door, leaving Naruto feeling like crap and wanting to chase after her. A medic chose that moment to walk in, though, leaving him confined to his bed._

When Naruto entered Tsunade's office, Sakura was standing there with a determined glint in her eyes. She looked about ready to beat him over the head. Tsunade also looked rather fierce. Naruto felt fear grip him for a moment, before he brushed it aside.

"Do you have any idea what's happening, Naruto?" Tsunade asked, and Naruto shook his head in confusion – a slight lie, but honestly he had no clue what was going on, why it was going on. Tsunade sighed.

"Though as much," she murmured, before continuing, "A human mind is made to hold one conscious – one human conscious. You have another mind in your head, and even though Haku isn't trying too it's tearing up you mind. You're going to die if he doesn't get out of there."

"I'm not letting Haku die," Naruto said, his voice soft and full of conviction. Tsunade sighed.

"Thought you would say that," she murmured angrily, her temple throbbing, "There is an alternative, but it's highly dangerous and could kill you both. Or it could keep you both alive."

"What is it?" Naruto demanded, eager to find a way to keep his friend alive – he couldn't loose him twice. Tsunade felt her temple throb in annoyance, but she tried to reel her temper in.

"Come with me," she said, marching from the room. Sakura stayed behind, watching Naruto with worried eyes as he practically zoomed out of the room after Tsunade, Jiraiya bringing up the rear with an amused expression that barely hid his worry. Sakura contemplated following after them for a brief second, before she nodded her head in determination and followed after. Jiraiya noticed her, but said nothing.

Tsunade led the to the hospital before going into places that Naruto had never been – conscious, that is. It was intensive care. Tsunade headed towards the last door on the right before sliding it open, her face solemn. Naruto hesitated before entering the room with a slight quirk of his eyebrow when he spotted who lay on the bed, seemingly unconscious.

It was a young man with long brown hair that went nearly to his knees. He lay on his back, his chest moving up and down with each shallow breath he took. His face looked peaceful, no sign of bad dreams. There was a long scar trailing from his temple to the middle of his upper lip, a small section of his nostril missing. He was thin, his ribcage easily spotted through his thin medical garb. He had a few muscles but they looked like they were out of use. He was hooked up to many machines that Naruto hadn't seen before, including IV drips that went into his arm.

"He is about 17 years old, and dieing," Tsunade said, "He's been comatose for the last three years of his life. There are no signs of mental activity, and we've been keeping him alive on his parents orders and blind hope. His parents, though, died recently – double suicide. He's got no family left, and the hospital is planning on unplugging the system and letting him die.

"What we could do is transfer Haku into his body. There is no mind for him to destroy – willingly or not – and no one to object. It's a difficult Jutsu, but it's quick – hopefully painless," Tsunade turned and faced the genin, who stared and the unconscious body in surprise.

"Haku could have his own body again?" Naruto asked, and Tsunade nodded.

"He'll have some trouble walking around at first, doing every day things – it'd be best for you to get it over with as soon as possible so you can start your training. Akatsuki isn't going to wait much longer then what is necessary. We need to move fast. If Haku is in your mind, eating away at it while you're trying to train, then you'll never succeed. You'll be useless." Tsunade grinned slightly as she saw the determination light up in his face, his hands clenching at his side.

"Do it," he said, looking at her with strong eyes, "Save Haku."

**-**

**So…short chapter, but it gets the story moving again. I know I skipped a helluva lot of things, but I really, REALLY didn't want to write that. ****So, as my profile says my interest in Naruto has faded and this will be my last Naruto story. I don't know how much longer there is to go since I started writing this before I became really good at writing our plotlines, so I'm trying to piece together what I remember. I tried to keep this pretty interesting, but it is kind of boring…in my opinion.**

**So, tell me what you think, no flames, all that jazz. I haven't read the past…oh, dozen or so chapters, so it's not stretching out all the way till then. It will definitely become an AU the further on this gets. Hope you don't mind. Sorry for any info I got wrong, I haven't dabbled in Naruto for son long this was…interesting to write, haha.**

**B.E. Nomads**


	17. Chapter 17

**Final Lifeline**

**By B.E.N**

**Chapter Seventeen:**

Naruto's leg bounced nervously as he sat in the hallway, staring at the door that hid his future. Haku was completely silent, but Naruto could feel his anxiousness. Naruto knew that he wanted his own body, he had known it for a while now, and the fact that it was so close it almost drove the Hyoton user mad.

Today was the day that everything would change – his life would never be normal again. Or would it become normal? He paused and thought about that. Haku's presence in his head had certainly made his life interesting, but he had been a part of him for so long that he wondered how he would go on without having that constant murmur in the background, that little thing that made life seem that much easier.

He sighed and let his head fall back against the wall. How long were these preparations going to take?

He was lonely. Sure, he had Haku, but he felt more alone than he had ever felt before, and he knew it was his own fault. Kiba was the only one who really stood by his side. Sakura was, as always, too obsessed with Sasuke to care about his deteriorating health, and ever since he'd accidentally hurt Hinata's feelings she'd gone missing from his daily routine. Neji claimed that she remained at home most days, training so furiously he was surprised by her sudden and completely unexplainable strength.

He felt like a piece of him was missing. Hinata had been an integral part of his life, and now she was just gone! It tore him up because nothing had ever haunted him so badly. Even Sasuke's disappearance didn't hurt this much. He knew why Sasuke left, had said goodbye in a weird way, but with Hinata she was just…gone.

God, he missed her. He missed the way she blushed, the way she would spontaneously hug him only to turn into a tomato, the way she smiled. She was all he thought about.

He had no idea what this meant, but some part of him knew that a life without Hinata wouldn't be a life at all.

"Naruto-kun?"

Naruto started and felt his body freeze as he spotted Tsunade in the doorway, her face firm and her eyes filled with fear.

"We're ready." She announced. Naruto's stomach lurched and he found himself looking along the hallway, almost as if he were expecting someone. When no one appeared, he sighed and nodded.

"Lets do this." He said firmly before entering the room, closing the door firmly behind him.

.

The first thing he noticed was the silence. It was deafening, terrifying, and for a horrifying moment he thought he was dead. Then a reoccurring beep entered his senses and he immediately recognized it as a heart monitor.

He was in a hospital. He was alive.

But was Haku?

His eyes snapped open and he sat up, starting in surprise as a timid gasp broke the silence. He turned his head and saw Hinata sitting there, familiar book held in her hands and her eyes wide.

"Hinata!" he said in surprise. The Hyuuga shuffled her feet slightly and held out the book.

"Y-You never asked for it back." She said, "I-I thought…it might come in handy. Gomen."

She awkwardly placed the book on the side of his bed and turned, heading towards the door. She lifted her hand to open the door and panic exploded in his chest – she couldn't leave, not yet!

"Hinata!" he said suddenly, making her freeze. "Please…please stay."

Hinata visibly hesitated before dropping her hand and facing him. The light reflected off the charm bracelet and hope bloomed in his chest – if she was still wearing it then that must mean something, right?

"You're still wearing that bracelet." He said, before mentally cursing himself. Hinata blushed and looked down at her hands, tugging at the chain.

"I-If you want it back so you can give it t-to Sakura-chan, then I understand." She said softly.

"No, No!" Naruto protested loudly, "I want you to have it. I was just surprised. I thought…" he swallowed, "I thought you hated me."

Hinata shook her head quickly, "N-No, I never hated you." She said, easing his fears. Naruto visibly relaxed before quickly floundering for words.

"I'm glad you came." Naruto said awkwardly, "I…I've really missed you, Hina-chan."

Her face bloomed a deep red and she scuffed her toe along the floor before offering him a shy smile, "I-I missed you too, Naruto-kun."

Before Hinata could react, Naruto was out of his bed and had her in a firm hug, tucking her head under his chin as he squeezed her. It was like he was trying to attach himself to her.

"Promise me we won't go through that again." He said firmly. Hinata blushed as she pulled away and nodded, a happy smile bursting across her face. Naruto finally pulled away and took a seat on the edge of the bed, watching her as she took a seat next to his bed as always.

"Do you know what's going on?" Naruto asked.

"You m-mean with Haku?" Hinata asked with a small blush, and she nodded solemnly, "I heard. I'm so sorry, Naruto-kun. I knew you were close."

Naruto's heart stopped, "H-He…is he?"

"Oh, I don't know!" Hinata said quickly, "I just came in to check on you…i-if you want we can go to his room."

Naruto opened his mouth to respond when there was a light knocking on the door and Tsunade poked her head in, smiling when she saw her was awake.

"Naruto, I see you're feeling okay." She said, stepping in fully.

"How is Haku?" Naruto asked quickly, "He's there, isn't he?"

Tsunade shuffled awkwardly, "He wasn't woken up yet, but there are signs of brain activity again. We think it went according to plan."

Naruto visibly relaxed, but you could still see the hesitance in his eyes. He flexed his fingers and a chill went up his spine at the odd sensation that traveled through his partially numb arm. He didn't think he would ever get used to that.

Tsunade noticed and offered him an apologetic smile, "We took another look at your arm while you were out, but we still haven't found anything. I'm sorry."

"It's fine." Naruto said quickly, tugging up the sleeve to glance at the jagged spiral. A chill shot up his arm and he shivered before pulling the sleeve down and jumping to his feet, popping his back with a relived sigh.

"Maa, lets go see Haku now." He said, and Hinata and Tsunade shared knowing looks. He was trying to get the attention off of him and onto something else. That only seemed to prove to them that he was in more pain than he wanted to let on. He craved attention when he was fine, but when he wasn't he tried anything to get the attention off of him.

"He's right across the hall." Tsunade explained, opening the door and holding it as the two teenagers walked through. Naruto pulled open Haku's door without a hesitation, and felt his heart thunder at the sight before him.

The brunette host that now acted as a home for Haku's soul was sitting up in bed, looking around with wide eyes like the world had turned purple and green. He turned to face the intruders and his grey eyes sparked with excitement as he spotted the Uzumaki.

"Naruto-kun!" he said, his voice deeper than Naruto was used to remembering it, "You're alright!"

"I'm alright." Naruto said with a grin, "Bit too quiet now for my tastes."

Haku laughed good naturedly and looked around the room with barely concealed awe. He looked like a kid in a candy store. He flexed his fingers and wiggled his toes, marveling at the rediscovered ability to move at will. A loud rumble echoed through the room and Haku blushed before grabbing his stomach.

"I guess I'm hungry." He said.

"I'll go get you something to eat." Tsunade said, "You need to put some meat on your bones before you start training."

"Training?" Naruto asked in confusion. Tsunade smiled.

"Well if what you said is true, then I think Haku might enjoy being a ninja again." Tsunade explained, "I also believe that he will be an excellent addition to Konoha. We need it now more than ever."

Haku's smile halted and for a second fear flashed in his eyes. Only Naruto noticed and when he opened his mouth to question it, Haku sent him a fearful look and gave his head one short shake. Naruto immediately understood.

"Speaking of food, I think I need some Ramen!" Naruto said quickly, causing the two women to look at him with raised eyebrows.

"You always want Ramen, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said shyly. Naruto laughed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Ahh, good point, Hina-chan." He turned to Tsunade, "Maybe I can head to Ichiraku and pick up some ramen for Haku and I!"

Tsunade pursed her lips, "I'd prefer he'd have something healthier to eat. He only just woke up."

"Well you said you needed to put meat on his bones." Naruto countered, "How is that going to happen if all he eats is salads?"

Tsunade smiled down at the Uzumaki and shook her head in amusement before saying, "How about Hinata and I go down and get you something a bit healthier than Ramen to eat?"

Naruto agreed without even looking at Haku for what he thought. Tsunade held open the door for Hinata as the two left the room, and only when the door shut did the blonde face his newly solid friend.

"Naruto-kun…I don't have the Hyoton anymore." Haku said after a pause. Naruto's heart stopped in his chest.

"N-Nani? Why not?" Naruto asked. Haku looked down at his thin, boney fingers and said solemnly,

"This body isn't of my clan. You know that Kekkei Genkai's are only passed down through the blood. When I entered this body, I gained a new blood." He looked up at Naruto with tear-filled eyes, "What am I going to do now?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, we're going to find a way to get you your Hyoton back!" Naruto demanded. "There has to be a way!"

"I am not an Uzumaki like you, Naruto." Haku disagreed, "The only way I could have ever regained my bloodline was if I had the blood of my clan within me."

Naruto began pacing, running his hands through his hair as his mind raced to find a way to help his friend – but no answer came to him. He stopped as the door opened and quickly put on a relaxed façade. His face changed to surprise when Jiraiya walked in.

"Jiraya!" he said. The man in question offered his subordinate a wide smile.

"Glad to see you're alright, kid." He said fondly, "I came to tell you that we'll be leaving in a week. You need time to recover."

They both knew that was just an excuse, but for once Naruto wasn't going to challenge it. He smiled up at his sensei and nodded.

"Thanks." He said gratefully. Jiraiya nodded and sent a glance towards Haku before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. There was a tense moment of silence before Haku spoke again.

"I will never be able to regain my bloodline." He said solemnly, "This is a fact. But trust me, Naruto-kun, when I say that I will do everything in my power to make sure you gain control of yours."

Naruto looked over at his friend, who suddenly looked so determine despite his deteriorating outside, and smiled gratefully. Haku may have lost hope, but Naruto had not. Naruto would find a way to give Haku his bloodline back, no matter what it cost.

That was a promise.

.

Naruto didn't think he had ever studied harder in his life. He kept his eyes firmly glued to the pages in Hikari's book, and though he was not the best or most attentive reader, he could not seem to put this book down.

When Hikari had given him the book, he thought it would be a textbook, medical in its tone and boring to the point of tears. Then he began to read, and he realized that he was wrong on so many levels. This wasn't a textbook.

This was Hikari's diary.

The first entry was dated almost eleven years ago, and her handwriting showed there was no way she could have been more than eight or nine years old. Naruto was lucky that he was so used to deciphering his own ineligible handwriting or else he would have never been able to read her story.

When she was three, her parents were murdered and she was captured by Orochimaru and hidden away as an experiment. She was surrounded in silence with only herself for company, and never fully learned to speak, and was born with damaged hearing that affected what words she could or could not pronounce.

When she turned ten, Orochimaru began testing on her, pumping her full of blood from various clans and forcing her to take on multiple bloodlines. Before she was fifteen she had developed a severe case of hemophilia, leading to the necessary adaptation of medical know-how.

That explained her fight at the chuunin exams, the constant green glow that surrounded her. Each little bump could cause severe internal bleeding, and her chakra sources were so large that she could afford to use medical techniques and fighting techniques simultaneously.

She recorded everything she knew about her abilities, and left almost no stone unturned. Unfortunately, as she got older her entries became few and far between. Her entries got shorter in shorter, some of them never exceeding one line.

Naruto sighed and turned yet another page, this one filled with doodles and vague notes on some jutsu she was conjuring up in her mind. A slip of slightly mangled paper fell out, and curiosity overtook him. He unwrinkled the paper and recognized Hikari's handwriting with ease.

_Naruto_

_I know you do not know me, and I also know that I do not really know you, but you are family, and I would die for you. I hope that we can become good friends after this exam is over, but I fear that Orochimaru has more sinister plans in action that I am unaware of. I wish I could tell you more._

_Please believe me when I tell you that I firmly believe that you are the last remaining hope to the Uzumaki clan, the last hope left of the whirlpool nation. Never give up in your dreams. Don't stop believing._

Naruto felt his hands tremble as her words echoed in his mind and an unbelievable sorrow filled his chest. Though Hikari had been dead for many months now, it still hurt him to realize the last link to his family was gone. The hope in her letter was astounding, and he felt an awkward twinge in his chest when he realized that they would never get that chance.

He continued reading.

_I have given you my necklace, one that I have had since birth. It is very precious to me, but I know you will treat it well. My time is nearing, and soon not even the most skilled medic will be able to save me. I can only hope that by helping you I've repented for the things I have been forced to do._

_The jewelry I have given to you is important beyond imagination. It contains the fi_

And then the letter stopped, the ink from her pen smearing across the page. Naruto's heart sunk, and for a moment he felt as if he'd lost everything again.

A knock sounded on his door and he called a quick come in, smiling as Hinata and Haku stepped in, Haku fresh from the hospital and looking slightly better in color. Naruto closed the book with the note inside it and set it aside.

He was leaving with Jiraiya tomorrow – this could wait for later. Right now he needed to be with his friends.

.

**Um…hi. I'm sure you all hate me by now, but hey, I never thought I would update again! :p Better than nothing, eh?**

**B.E. Nomads**


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